


A Good Run For Your Money

by AcidGreenFlames



Series: Run Seiries [2]
Category: Transformers - All Media Types
Genre: M/M, Multi, Past Rape/Non-con, Please read warnings in chapter 9 notes, Sexual Content, Warnings May Change, Warnings applying to chapter 9, horrific science, mention of attempted breeding, some sexual content, warnings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-30
Updated: 2015-10-15
Packaged: 2017-11-27 12:28:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 108,732
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/662007
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AcidGreenFlames/pseuds/AcidGreenFlames
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>*Sequel* While struggling with confusing and conflicting feelings, Starscream and his trine struggle to fit in amongst the Autobot crew; mean while Sunstreaker's hurtful words have chased his twin's new found friend away and he is sent to bring her home. What should be an easy mission will reveal a deadly threat to the Autobots and all their allies. *AU*</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. When Harsh Words Lead To Dumb Ideas

**Author's Note:**

> Important Information
> 
> "Blah" Speaking
> 
> ::Blah:: comm. link
> 
> 'Blah'bonded speech
> 
> 'Blah' thinking
> 
> Astrosecond- 2.5 earth Seconds
> 
> Klik- 150 earth seconds/ 2.5 earth Minutes
> 
> Orn- 150 earth minutes/ 2.5 earth Hours
> 
> Joor- 60 earth hours/2.5 earth Days
> 
> Metacycle- 17.5 earth days/2.5 earth Weeks
> 
> Vorn- 10 earth weeks/2.5 earth months
> 
> Stellercycle-30 earth months/2.5 years
> 
> Breem-slang for a moment/minute.
> 
> Night Cycle: star down to star up
> 
> Day Cycle: Star up to star down
> 
> Authors Note: Alright, here it is guys, the sequel to Running Wild. For new readers, this story won't make a lick of sense unless you read that story first. For returning readers, thank you for reading this stroy as well, let's get this show on the road :D
> 
> Also, the main focus of this story will be Starscream and Sunstreaker, but the two are not romantically linked. Just to clarify any confusion.
> 
> The story's rating is as such for later chapters, and each chapter will have its own set of warnings. Please read these warnings and keep them in mind for each chapter.
> 
> And as always, thank you to my wonderful beta, Darkness_Rising, who always manages to catch all the little mistakes
> 
> Disclaimer: I own only my OC's, nothing else.

The V-twelve engine screamed as the red Lamborghini took the corner hard, dust kicking up from the back tyres as it drifted around the cone in the middle of the figure eight. The red headed girl that drove the Lambo laughed as she did her second figure of eight on the obstacle course, her brown eyes sparkling with delight, the base from the music pounding through her and the powerful metal frame.

Her male passenger laughed with her, relaxing easily in the passenger seat, at ease with her at the wheel; his black hair unaffected by the wind and his blue eyes wide with joy, almost glassy as though he was high, the drive his drug.

The high performance car suddenly straightened out as she took them out of the figure eight, pushing the engine harder, faster, barrelling towards the mud pit. Danny fully intended to drift through that too, intending to coat mud along the crimson fenders.

"They're not going to make it."

Callie glanced up from her stop watch to look at Thundercracker's bored faceplates, his red optics following the red sports car as they ran the obstacle course.

Settling a little more comfortably on the seeker's wide blue shoulder plate, the blonde grinned up at him. "I dunno TC. They're going pretty hard. I think they'll shave a few seconds off their time."

A hard snort from behind the blue seeker made Thundercracker glance over his shoulder to see Starscream slowly making his way to where the Decepticon and human stood, watching Danny and Sideswipe going through the obstacle course, trying to beat their best time.

A soft feeling rippled through the other seeker and to his trine mate, he was glad to see his trine leader had come out. After six weeks, Starscream was still having a hard time fitting in with their new allies; it didn't help that most of them seemed set against making it easy on him, not that Starscream made it easy on himself either.

There was still that deep seated hurt buried deep in the seekers spark; angry and raw and it led to more than one outburst of hurt feelings that needed to be soothed. They were doing better, to a degree, but it was still going to take time to rebuild the trine bonds to what they should be.

Thundercracker pushed amusement to his trine leader as Starscream came to stand next to the blue seeker, his frame tense as he watched Sideswipe and Danny race.

Crimson optics pinned on the frontliner and the human, Starscream suddenly sighed. "Cliffjumper has been at Skywarp again."

A dark feeling swept through Thundercracker and he could feel Callie tense on his shoulder, her narrowed blue eyes glanced up at her guardian's trine leader.

Forcing calm in to his tone, Thundercracker focused on Sideswipe's racing form. "I don't know what that littler fragger…"

"Fucker sounds better." Callie grumbled from his shoulder.

Thundercracker ignored his charge's hot, angry words. "Hates more. The fact he's Sideswipe's friend…" a miracle in of itself. "or the fact we still wear the Decepticon insignia."

Starscream snorted, awkwardly reaching out to Thundercracker through the trine bonds. The blue seeker responded in kind, trying to rebuild what they had lost.

This was at least something they _could_ work on since most of the inhabitants of the _Ark_ seemed to be determined to make their integration into the Autobots forces as difficult as possible, giving them some time alone. _Most_ of the command staff, not all of course, but then Red Alert hardly trusted his own mechs, trusted the seekers. That was enough for Thundercracker for now.

Starscream shrugged, one shoulder coming up. "I hardly attempt to try to decipher what goes through Cliffjumper's processor on day to day events."

"Not a lot." Callie muttered darkly as she watched Sideswipe's speeding frame racing for the finish.

Starscream flashed a smirk at the human before it quickly dissolved back into a stoic stare. "Yes well, he can't be all that bright. He tends to pick on larger opponents like seekers or the twins." His dark helm dipped towards Sideswipe's speeding form, his crimson optics flickering to where a very annoyed Sunstreaker stood like a solid wall of ice, dark and angry.

Callie snorted, blue eyes glancing at the stop watch. "He has a habit of instigating fights with larger mechs and cries foul when they finally snap." Her eyes narrowed, darkened. "Boys like that back in the day used to get a beat down by their own crews."

Starscream's helm tipped to the side, optics glancing up as he thought. "We could arrange that."

A very un-lady like snort broke from Callie, accompanied by the nasty smirk that spread across her lips at the thought.

Crossing his arms over his cockpit, Starscream sighed, bored. "So, they're finally going to beat their record are they?"

Callie grinned up at Thundercracker triumphantly, the trine leader confused when he felt annoyance from his trine mate.

Changing the subject, Thundercracker glanced at Starscream. "Have the human's been making any more of a stink about relocating the girls?"

Starscream shrugged, watching Sideswipe making the final run. For the past three weeks, Mearing had been demanding that the girls be relocated. Not even to a base, just merely what the humans called a _safe house._

Safe house, Thundercracker's aft. It would put the girls out _there_ , on their own, far from his protection.

The hell that would happen and so far, General Morshower had managed to find reasons as to why the girls were considered to not be a _waste of good resources_ , but a more permanent solution needed to be found, and fast.

Starscream was Thundercracker's inside mech on the on goings of the command staff; although the seeker only had authority over his trine, Optimus had been true to his word and made Starscream a commander of sorts.

Although he had no other power, still had to listen to not only Optimus, but Prowl and Jazz as well, Starscream at least got to listen in on most of the commanders meetings. He still had to prove himself to the others, prove this wasn't some sick ruse to get inside the Autobot base and kill them all.

So far, for the most part, Starscream was actually behaving himself and thus far got along surprisingly well with the Prime. Thundercracker was sure a lot of it had to do with the fact that, unlike Megatron, Optimus listened to what Starscream was saying and not so much too _how_ he was saying it.

Starscream, naturally, was still an insufferable glitch, but he brought a certain perceptive that even the Autobots wouldn't be so foolish to pass up.

As though merely thinking his name could summoned the Autobot leader, Optimus Prime suddenly appeared at the finish line of the course, moving with easy grace to the small group as Sideswipe came screaming towards them; Danny pushing his engine, his alt form as hard as it could go.

Thundercracker nodded to his leader, not his master, his leader, while Callie grinned up at him. Happy that the Prime had kept his word.

"Prime." Starscream nodded, his tone almost mocking. "I didn't think you had the time to come watch your little frontliner race."

Thundercracker stiffened, as did Starscream; old habits die hard, and too often Starscream's sarcastic remarks got him beaten, hurt, when he went one step too far with Megatron.

Optimus Prime however, was not Megatron. The Prime was an endless pool of patience and calm serenity, his armor barley bristling at Starscream's ridicule. "Normally I do not Starscream. Sideswipe was supposed to be on duty ten minutes ago."

"How quaint, the mighty Prime has to retrieve his frontliner." Starscream could just not help it.

Thundercracker cringed, inwardly rolling his optics at Starscream's behaviour as he tormented Optimus. Trying to push him, to see if the was as noble, as calm as everyone said he was.

"Not normally, however Jazz is off on a mission at the moment and Prowl is dealing with Cliffjumper." Soft blue optics floated down to crimson. "I hope you will speak to Skywarp about not looking for retribution for Cliffjumper's actions."

Startled, Starscream glanced up at his Prime before looking away and Thundercracker could feel his trine leader's confusion.

::He respects you.:: Thundercracker supplied.

::But why?::

::Because he wants to trust you Starscream. He has faith that you will be the commander we all know you can be.::

An odd sort of embarrassment suddenly rushed through his commander's systems as Starscream did all he could from dropping his optics. It saddened Thundercracker to see how badly Megatron had beaten down his ego so much so, that a simple complement could produce that kind of reaction from the seeker.

Thundercracker knew that Prime was good for Starscream in that way; he was kind and fair and actually listened to his commanders. Prime kept him grounded, pushed the seeker when he needed it but backed off when the time was right.

Ignoring his trine mate, Starscream nodded to the Prime. "I will see to it."

Optimus nodded; glad to make it through a single conversation that didn't end with Starscream yelling at him. Although, and Optimus would never, ever admit this to anyone, he was amused by the seeker's reaction when Optimus himself didn't react at all to Starscream's outbursts.

Optimus nodded in return to the seeker. "Thank you Starscream."

Thundercracker felt another burst of pride at the Prime's thanks, again, something that Megatron never did.

Sideswipe finally came screaming up, his engine pulsing hard as Danny yanked on the E-brake, spinning the frontliner's alt form so that the driver door was facing the group. The human barely had time to leap from the crimson Lambo as her passenger dissolved from view as Sideswipe transformed smoothly, both yelling "Time!?"

Callie grinned as she hit the stop watch, and Optimus gave Sideswipe a moment to discover if they had actually broken their record. The blonde cleared her throat, grinning at the faces of suspended joy and excitement from her cousin and the Autobot.

"You shaved a whole two seconds from your time."

For a moment, the pair looked surprised at the blonde before they exploded in high laughter and cheering and Danny double high fived Sideswipe's servos in congratulations as the pair laughed again.

The seekers and the Prime watched the pair, amusement hidden by their different masks, before Optimus cleared his throat. "Sideswipe, are you not supposed to be on the communications deck?"

The dirty, grimy frontliner stopped, paused as he thought about that for a moment, considering what day it was before a strangled squeak broke from his chest. The joy drained from his face plates and without another word or noise, the crimson frontliner turned and ran for the base, heading for the communications deck. Blaster was no doubt waiting for him to start his shift.

Danny's amused laughter followed the frontliner's sudden departure as Optimus sighed and shook his helm, Starscream staring almost dumbfounded at the scene.

"You lead a lot of sparklings Prime." The tri-coloured seeker sighed, shaking his helm.

Optimus fought the snort that begged to be released, thankful that his grin was at least hidden by the battle mask he wore. "I am painfully aware of this Starscream but bear in mind that most of my mechs were civilians or younglings before the war. They don't have the training most of the Decepticon's have."

Crimson optics rolled. "Please Prime. I was a youngling at the beginning of the war. You lead a bunch of sparklings." His mocking tone turned to almost awe. "How have you managed to survive, keep your Autobot's alive _and_ keep Megatron at bay for so long?"

Amusement flickered through Optimus at the seeker's words. "Sometime's Starscream, I wonder myself."

Thundercracker managed to wrestle the smirk from his face, keeping it plainly neutral as he felt a shudder of surprise flicker through his trine leader at the Prime's almost teasing tone. Megatron would never had bantered with Starscream like this, never would have bothered to play with words; a battle field that Starscream always would rule.

With the seeker's momentary silence, Optimus used his opportunity to get a word in before something else happened, something actually related to their lives. Pulling his data pad from subspace, the Prime handed it to the seeker. "These are the plans that have been presented for the seeker's hanger, they'll be closer to the Arielbots than you had said you wanted to be, but we have little choice at the moment."

Plucking the data pad from the outstretched servo, Starscream turned the screen on, crimson optics studying on the designs. Thundercracker couldn't stop the new grin that built on his face from the warm feeling that mixed with confusion from his trine leader.

Although he had never said it, Starscream thrived on appreciation and acknowledgement and whether or not the Prime knew it, these little moments were winning Starscream over.

Voice even, as though nothing was amiss, Starscream commented. "There's enough room for more seekers?"

Optimus nodded, "As you asked. I'm just not sure if it's enough, you seemed confident that if we can get word to Cyberton other seekers may be willing to join."

A moment of dismay flicked across the seeker's face before it returned to its normal grimace. "It's hard to say. Just because we were dumb enough to leave Megatron's fold doesn't mean that others will be. Possible, yes, but it's difficult to judge who would follow us here."

Optimus nodded, hoping against all odds that Starscream could bring more seekers to their side, turn the tide of war and end it once and for all. The Decepticons had always ruled the air, but now with the Decepticon air commander standing with the Prime, maybe, just maybe, others would be willing to follow.

The Prime's blue optics studied the Decepticon seeker as he continued to study the data pad; another reason for having the seekers join them, was simply to get Starscream away from Megatron.

The seeker, although still angry and glitched, had calmed in the few weeks he had been there. Starscream was intelligent, cunning in ways that Optimus never could be, had an honest want to be useful and just wanted to go home and do right by Cyberton. With the right guidance and encouragement, Starscream really could be the terror of the skies, a brutal air commander that could not be beaten.

That, Optimus was sure, was what Megaton feared. He wanted, liked, the seeker beaten down, weak and his alone. Starscream had been staggered by his own hatred for his previous master, and Megatron had played on the seeker's emotion.

The Matrix called to the Prime to protect the seeker, keep him away from the crazed titan and allow him to heal and Optimus was more than happy to comply with that; the trine leader and his trine had been so wrecked when they came to the _Ark_ , both emotionally and physically, that Optimus couldn't help but want to help.

And he did the best he could with what he had.

Starscream glanced up again, crimson optics bright and healthy. "We need to discuss this further."

Optimus nearly grinned, there was no question in his tone, and the Prime nodded. "I figured you'd like to. We can go to my office to discuss it."

Fear suddenly shot through Starscream and his wings shot high as an old fear ripped through him, strong enough that even Thundercracker could feel it. The blue seeker instantly shot comfort back to this leader, letting him know he was there too, he wasn't going anywhere.

Gratitude shot back from Starscream and once again, Optimus proved himself to be a more capable leader than Megatron for recognising the signs of the seeker's discomfort. The tight plating, the too high wings that splayed wide; the fear of being trapped in a small room with no wind or room to move and fly unnerving him. Megatron likely knew these signs too, playing on them cruelly.

Optimus used these signs to put Starscream at ease. "If you are comfortable with this, of course."

Plating and wings instantly relaxed, and Starscream seemed to deflate to his normal state of annoyance. A choice, a way out is what Optimus was giving him. He didn't _have_ to go with the Prime, if he didn't want to.

Taking on his usual air of sarcasm and annoyance, Starscream snorted. "Of course I am comfortable with this Prime! I am not a sparkling that needs to be coddled." He sneered, his bravado a front for the fear that had just plagued him.

Without another word, the Prime nodded for Starscream to go in first, the trine leader snarling and stomping past him. With an amused shake of his helm, Optimus followed the seeker, praying to Primus that Starscream would behave and they could get through this little chat without the seeker yelling at him, again.

As the pair entered the _Ark_ , Danny laughed, still by Thundercracker's pede. "How long do you think before Starscream jumps OP?"

Defensiveness shot through Thundercracker. The idea of Starscream and the Prime set the blue seeker's denta grinding. Starscream wasn't ready for that kind of relationship; he was barely moving on from what Megatron did to him.

The distinct growl from the blue seeker dragged another laugh from Danny. "Believe it or not TC, but I'm calling it now."

The growling reduced to the grumbling sound of an unhappy engine and Callie's blue optics rolled. "Danny, really?"

The car thief shrugged. "I am just saying."

Callie's eyes bore down at her cousin's grinning face. "Shouldn't you be harassing someone else?"

"Optimus took my playmate. What I am supposed to do now?" She asked in mock sadness.

Callie sighed, "I dunno. And before you ask, no, I will not be your playmate, I have plans with TC to go flying."

Danny tutted at her cousin. "How easily you've replaced me."

"Yes well, I barely tolerate you, and love TC. It wasn't really that hard to replace you." Callie playfully mocked without missing a beat, grinning down at her cousin from Thundercracker's shoulder.

Warmth spread from Thundercracker's chest; glad he still held the human's favour, even after all that had happened.

Danny laughed, shooting her cousin a rude hand gesture, one of her favourites if Thundercracker guessed right. "Whatever Cal. Have a good flight or whatever nonsense you're doing. I think I'm going to go work on the Shelby."

Red optics and blue eyes rolled. It had taken a lot of begging, pleading and a throwing of a tantrum to get the Shelby to the base. Ultimately, it had been decided that the broken down car would keep Danny busy and out of everyone's hair. Idle hands are the devils plaything, or some such nonsense, had convince Mearing to allow Danny space in one of the Nest issued garage bays.

Callie laughed; a high and happy sound that Thundercracker was glad to hear. "Good luck with that."

Danny turned, heading to the NEST garage, waving over her shoulder as she walked away from the seeker and his charge.

Thundercracker tipped his helm a little closer to his human with a sigh. "I heard she was fixing the car to buy back the horses."

Callie sighed, leaning a little into his helm, her body relaxed on his shoulder. "Yeah I know. I don't think she'll get enough to get both back and find a place to board them, but it's keeping her busy. So who am I to tell her not to?"

There was a distinct sadness in the girl's voice, and it made the seeker frown. He knew that Callie wanted her horse back, missed Patches as much as Lucy missed Cinderella and it made Thundercracker's spark ache that he couldn't help her with this. "A pity Swindle isn't here. He could have gotten the horses _and_ kept the Shelby whilst likely making a profit at the same time."

Confusion drawing her away from her sadness, Callie frowned at her blue guardian. "Who's Swindle?"

A smile flickered across the seeker's pale face. "He's ah...a con-mech. A slagger if I ever met one, but if you ever need to move product, Swindle can do it for you."

Callie giggled. "And this was an old team mate?"

"Team mate is a loose term." This time Thundercracker couldn't fight the smirk that spread across his face.

Smiling seemed to be contagious as Callie mirrored his grin. "Was there anyone you got along with?"

The seeker snorted. "Let's get into the sky and I'll tell you some _Nemesis_ stories."

Callie laughed, her voice high and happy as the blue seeker transformed, encasing Callie safely in his cockpit as he rocketed into the sky; her small body pressing into the seat of his alt mode as he took off.

This was one of his favourite parts of the day, flying with Callie and telling her stories from his time with the Decepticons. He could tell her the good and the bad, knowing he was safe from judgment. Callie was his friend and she loved him like the brother she never had.

"This one time, just after the Combaticons woke up here on Earth," his easy voice rumbled over the small speakers inside his alt mode, amusement colouring his tone. "Swindle tried to sell Skywarp a fake gaming consol, he called the Play-X four..."

()()()

Sunstreaker watched his twin run to his shift, ten minutes late, again.

The gold twin then watched his Prime talk with the bloody seekers that had followed the stupid humans back to the _Ark_ and an unsettled rage grew from the frontliner's chest, spreading out from his spark. So much had changed in the last six weeks and things had changed for the worse, in his opinion.

Seekers were living at the _Ark_ along with a handful of humans that they didn't know. Humans that were friends with the slagging seekers! Humans who were nothing more than glorified pets, _civilians_!

Sunstreaker did not like it, not one damned bit. He didn't trust the flying slaggers as far as he could throw them, didn't like them on his base. The Autobot wasn't comfortable with having them so close and he despised that his brother seemed to make friends so easily with the fraggers, who just weeks before, they had been hunting for and fighting with.

Hatred swelled within the gold mech as he watched from a distance with anger in his spark, as Prime followed Starscream into the _Ark_. Watched the blue fragger joke and tease the human femmes that were suddenly living there, when they really should have been shipped out weeks ago.

Most of all he _hated_ , loathed, the human called Danny who had not only stolen his brother when she thought he was nothing but a car, but had stolen his damned processor, Sunstreaker was sure. He had no clue to why his twin liked to play with the human; Skywarp at least he could almost understand, but the human?

It was a fragging joke. A sick fragging joke that desperately needed to end, would end if Sunstreaker had anything to do with it.

With a snarl, the golden mech peeled himself off the _Ark`s_ wall and stormed after the human femme as she seemed to almost skip to the humans garage. Her happiness, her joy, the fact she was happy to be there, just angered Sunstreaker all the more.

He ground his denta until he could taste metal shavings and cursing, the front liner snarled at the human. "Flesh bag!"

Danny ignored him as she started humming some off tune song. Whether she was ignoring him or just didn't hear him, it was hard to say, but either way he hated her all the more. If she ignored him, then she was an insolent little glitch that needed to be taught her place and if she just didn't hear him, it was because she was a squashy flash bag, created with inferior parts. While he could hear for miles, if he tuned his audio sensitivity up as high as he could, she likely could only hear a few meters around her.

Primus he hated humans.

Snarling again, not bothering to keep his rage in check, Sunstreaker yelled louder at her. " _Flesh bag_!"

The girl didn't slow her pace, her small feet kicking up dust as she continued her walk to the garage but she did glance over her shoulder, brown eyes hardening when she saw his large gold frame marching stiffly towards her.

Her smile hardened, turned sharp and nasty. She disliked him as much as he disliked her; the fact he went out of his way to make her suffer, to upset her more likely the reason for this. The girl however, needed to realize that Sideswipe was his twin, and he did not like to share.

"What do you want Sunstreaker?" Danny barked at him, turning her attention back ahead of her.

He didn't bother to hide the snarl that bubbled from his chest. "Why bother!?" He snapped angry and hot at her. "Why bother to fix that scrap car of yours when it's worth nothing."

Her brown eyes narrowed up at him as he fell in line next to her, his hard words cutting at her more than she was willing to admit. "What…" she snapped back, unafraid, "would you know about it?"

"Apparently, more than you." His icy optics narrowed on her, cold and cruel. "Since I know that you'll never be able to buy the flea bags back for your dumb cousin."

Danny hid the flash of hurt that bolted through her small body while her hands balled into tight fists. "I'm surprised that you even know a word as big as _apparently_ Sunstreaker." She forced her tone to turn mocking through sheer force of will. "According to most of the _Ark_ , you're too dumb to string more than a few words together."

The large Autobot snarled at her, his optics flashing red in his anger before chilling back to blue. "Watch your tone flesh bag. It'd be a shame to step on you."

Perhaps not a shame, but it would upset his twin if he killed the girl; all he wanted was to see her cry. To see the little glitch break down, it would give him a certain degree of satisfaction.

"Ohhh! I'm so fucking scared of you Sunstreaker!" she mocked him, wiggling her fingers up at him in her ridicule.

The thought and urge to step on her grew but the knowledge of how it would hurt Sideswipe kept him from doing it. Instead, he did the only thing he could do to hurt her, since he couldn't punch her without killing her. "What I would be concerned about is how you're going to deal with your cousins after you crush their little feelings when you're unable to get back the four legged flea bags."

The girl drew to a stop, tipping her head up to glare at him, her small fists tightening while her rage was naked on her small face.

A thrill shot through Sunstreaker; good, let the little glitch be angry at him.

"That's not true." She sneered.

"It is." He hissed back at her, his tone cold. "You'll never get the horses back, and it'll just be another failure to add to your ever growing list."

Danny snarled like an animal at him, wordlessly and angry, allowing him to continue.

"Nearly getting Mia killed, couldn't keep your garage from going up in flames and now you won't be able to get the flea bags back for your cousin." The front liner mocked the human as he reeled off the list.

"Blow it out your ass Sunstreaker." Danny hissed up at him, her brown eyes dark with her rage, helpless to do anything about it.

The golden Autobot grinned down at her, his smirk nasty and cold. "You're pathetic Danny. You couldn't even keep your own family safe. You had to rely on slagging Decepticon's to save your cousin and your sister."

Hurt and rage mingled in her eyes as Danny battled to keep the emotion from spilling out. Instead of breaking down, like Sunstreaker had hoped for, Danny internally gathered herself as she drew up a little taller, her eyes hardening. "And you're so pathetic, you're own twin abandoned you for a human."

Shock rippled through his frame at the human's cold words, his armor bristling and puffing out in his anger while he bared his denta at the girl. His silence allowed Danny to continue. "Why else would your own twin ditch you and hang out with me?"

Hurt ricocheted through the frontliner; the real source of the golden Autobot's anger, his sadness. His own twin, his other half, had indeed dropped him to hang out with the inferior human. A pathetic little femme who had no armor, could die far too easily, and hadn't been able to help save Sideswipe's life when he had needed her the most, during the battle of L.A.

Sideswipe had almost died protecting her and her family, and Danny couldn't do anything to save the crimson frontliner. She was small, squishy and pathetic. Yet, his twin chose to spend his down time with her and not him.

Smugness radiated off the human, she knew she had struck a chord with the frontliner, had hit something sensitive within him and had done if far quicker and with far more efficiency than he. If there was one thing Sunstreaker had learned about human femmes it was this, most of them spent their entire lives not on a physical battle field, but an emotional one and they were masters of their could crush her without thought and with ease, the golden mech knew that, but she could make him hurt just as badly. Danny knew his one weakness and was going to exploit it, even with Sideswipe as her friend, just to hurt him.

An animalist growl rumbled along with the revving of his engine, low and dangerous. "Listen you little glitch, stay away from Sideswipe.""Or what!?" Danny hissed back.

The golden frontliner glared down at her, getting a little closer to her small body, bearing down on her as he tried to intimidate her. The human tried to make herself look larger, taller than she was, stretching her spine as long as it would go, her fists still balled.

"Or I'm going to…"

"Danielle! Sunstreaker!" Jazz's angry voice suddenly shot out as he came down the walkway from the human's garage. The smaller 'bot was marching quickly to them, visor dark in anger. "Ah thought Ah told you two ta stop wit' the fighting!"

Both the human and the Cybertronian backed down. Sunstreaker's armor bristling, flattening, both of them their balled fists relaxing and the pair stepped away from each other, anger still clear in their eyes.

"Thought you were away on a mission Jazz." Sunstreaker snarled; a declaration rather than a question.

The dark blue visor narrowed on the frontliner, projecting as much cold hostility as Sunstreaker did broiling rage. "Just got back. Was intending ta give Prowl his report when Ah heard ya two bickering like sparklings."

The icy visor shifted to glare down at the human below him, her brown eyes still narrowed on golden armor. "And Ah've just about had it wit' all this fighting between the pair of ya. It ends t'day." The light behind the visor flashed, his gaze shifting to glare at Sunstreaker again. "Do Ah make mahself clear?"

Blue optics narrowed on the girl. "Yes sir."

Brown eyes never wavered. "Sure Jazz, whatever you say."

The sub commander let them glare at each other a beat longer, before he snapped. "Git going, the pair of ya. I don' wan'ta see either of ya wit'in a hundred yards o' each other fer the rest of the day. Do ya both understand me?"

There was another soft grumble of understanding from the pair of them, a snarl from Sunstreaker and a snort from Danny.

"Good." Jazz's tone was cold and angry, his engine rumbling in displeasure. "Now git!"

Sunstreaker snarled. "Failure."

Exasperated, Jazz snapped at the warrior. "Sunstreaker!"

Danny snorted back. "Pathetic."

"Danny!"

The pair glared at each other a beat longer, angry and hard before they turned and marched away from each other; Sunstreaker to the _Ark_ and Danny to the garage.

Shaking his helm, Jazz sighed. He was too tired for this nonsense. He had spent far too much time away on this mission, as far as Jazz was concerned, and what he found out was disheartening. He just wanted to find Prowl, deliver his report then crawl into a warm berth with his mate.

Jazz certainly didn't want to come home to Sunstreaker and Danny fighting with each other, again.

Sighing again, suddenly feeling the exhaustion of his mission, the weight of the information he carried, the terror he suspected, Jazz was done for the day. Straightening up, giving the look of a true commander, Jazz tried to not let his pedes drag as he headed to the _Ark,_ determined to make it to at least Prowl's office before he passed out.

()()()

Danny marched to the garage with more force than necessary. Unable to bottle her hurt and rage she quietly cursed, kicking up a dirt cloud in her annoyance. She wanted to scream, to rage, to punch Sunstreaker right in his pretty boy face; yet unlike every other asshole she had ever dealt with, he was not only much larger than she, but made of metal. Any damage she could inflict on him would have to be done with a blow torch or heavy gun fire.

Still, the thought of _someone_ slapping that smug look off his face brought a measure of pleasure to the human. There had to be someone she could convince to do it, she couldn't be the only one annoyed by him.

Prowl and Blaster were walking by, helms down, studying a data pad. The Autobot SIC was talking in a hushed voice to the communications specialist. "It was a drone Blaster, I'm sure that's what I saw."

The wide plated boom box sighed. "It can't be. That would mean..."

"I am aware of what that would mean Blaster. But I am sure this is what I saw." There was such certainty in Prowl's tone, no room for uncertainty in the Autobot's organized mind.

Blaster's blue optics glanced up from the pad and at his commander. "How do we stop them, if this is what we think it is?"

"Best way to stop drones is to take out their master, in any way possible. They will be linked to whoever controls them, and if they die, the drones go with them."

"What about confusion? If you were able to surprise or confuse the master, would the drone react in the same way?"

Prowl considered the thought for a moment, blue optics going hazy in thought as his battle processor analyzed the information, meanwhile Danny slowed her angry storming to hear the answer. "There is a ninety five percent chance that this is a correct theory Blaster. From the information I have, I would be comfortable to say it would be an effective way to battle drones if backed into a corner."

Blaster nodded, his helm dipping back down to study the data pad, allowing Prowl to continue. "We need to wait for Jazz and speak to him before we make too many assumptions. He has already arrived back on base and should be in my office."

Blaster nodded, his usually joyous face set into a grim frown. Heaving a sigh, Danny quickened her light steps, hurrying away from the commanders, nearly running to the garage that she often found her refuge.

Storming into the small building, Danny threw open the heavy metal door, using all her strength to shove it open, relieved that the garage was empty, that no one was around to witness her anger and break down. Tears suddenly welled at her brown eyes, tears she desperately tried to blink away.

Glancing at the broken down Shelby, still riddled with bullet holes and broken glass, her tears welled harder, fatter. She'd never fix it in the right amount of time to buy the horses back and the sad reality was that she'd never get enough money to get the horses back, not both of them, and certainly not with enough to rent a stable for them to live. She was a failure, just as Sunstreaker said she was.

Not only could Danny not get the horses back for her cousins, she couldn't protect her family in their much more frightening new world; they were forced to rely on the generosity of others and that never worked out well.

Danny's angry tears welled further, a single one sliding down her smooth cheek before she ruthlessly rubbed it away. Scrubbing at her face with the back of her hand, Danny took a deep, shaky breath, gathering her thoughts. Her hands curled into tight balls, her nails biting into the flesh of her palm as her regret, her hurt turned to anger and hate; and Primus, did she ever _hate_ Sunstreaker. The sob that could have broken from her chest in her sadness came out as a growl from her aggression.

How dare he! How dare that golden plated bastard talk to her like that! She could dismantle him if she had the chance, strip him of his armor and sell it on eBay. She had the skills and she had means; she had the will to do what needed to be done to get what she wanted.

A familiar calm slowly came over her, turning her rage inward, turning it cold. Huffing an angry sigh, Danny's brown eyes slid over the cars in the garage, over the red beaten form of the Shelby and the broken forms of the damaged military vehicles, before landing on Epps's navy blue and black Suzuki. The motorcycle had just had an oil change and was begging to be taken out.

Brown eyes blinked at the bike, the cogs in Danny's head turning over a plan, going over all the details. Knowing, with all she was, that Callie would have her head if she followed through with her crazy plan, but Sunstreaker's hurtful, emotionally charged words echoed back in her head, hardening her resolve, making her want to follow through on her crazy plan.

Callie would be furious with her, but she would prove to everyone that she wasn't a failure, that she wasn't pathetic. She had talents and she knew how to make fast money; she knew how to make a lot of fast, dirty, money.

Eyes narrowed on the crotch rocket before glancing at the large bay doors and back to the bike. She would be able to make the money to get the horses back, and then some. She still had friends who were always looking for another booster, and it wouldn't be permanent, she told herself. Just to make enough money to buy the horses back.

Her heart pounded in her chest at the thought while adrenalin flushed through her veins, making everything seem brighter than it was. This was a bad idea, a betrayal of trust to Callie, to whom she promised to not steal anymore, and to Epps, whose bike she was planning on stealing.

Yet, she argued with herself. Callie would forgive her if she came back with the money to get the horses back and Epps couldn't be angry forever, so long as she brought his bike back; it was borrowing it really, not stealing if she intended on returning it.

Danny glanced at the work bench closest to the bike, the black polished helmet sitting there. It would be too big but she would make do. Glancing back to the bike, the girl nodded to herself. This was a bad plan, she knew it, but she would rub this in Sunstreaker's face that, yes, she could in fact take care of her family.

Mind made up, and before she could talk herself out of her foolish idea, Danny made a beeline for the bike, snagging the helmet off the table. The Suzuki was too big for her, but again, she'd make do, and she slipped the helmet onto her small head.

Readjusting the brown leather jacket so that is sat right over her small body, Danny prised open the panel she was looking for and hotwired the bike, grinning when it started and purred like a cat; light and powerful, again, begging to be taken out.

A sudden bolt of old fear, of being caught, made her fast, light on her feet as she ran for the big bay door, hauling it open with the dangling chain. Rushing back to the bike, Danny threw one leg over the side and righting it, she kicked back the kick stand.

Easing the bike from the garage, not even bothering to close the door behind her, Danny slowly rolled to the gate. She wasn't a prisoner here, she was able to go when she choose to; granted she was suppose to have Lennox or Mearing's permission to do so, but the ranger guarding the gate didn't even blink at her when she flicked up the visor of the helmet and offered a smile.

The guard didn't bother to stop her when he saw it was Danny as she often went out for drives just to get away from base for a while, usually with Sideswipe. She never went far or went out for too long.

Snapping the visor down when the gate was opened, the red haired girl gunned the throttle, becoming a blur as she rocketed away and down the road, not once looking back at the shrinking base.

()()()

For seven days they worried about Danny and wondered on her whereabouts. She had left with only the clothes on her back and the money in her pocket. Her cell phone had been found in the NEST issued quarters so she was untraceable from both Liz, and the other NEST hackers.

Once she hit the high way, Danny was out of NESTs range and their cameras. They had managed to track Robert Epps's bike all the way to the major highway, but with the way the highways connected, the thief could have gone anywhere.

Callie, panic stricken and angry, suspected she would have gone back to their old hunting grounds in Las Vegas, but until they had some form of proof of that, it was speculation at best.

They had also reported the bike as stolen, hoping that maybe the police in whatever city she was in would pick her up. But as Callie explained, Danny was a professional car thief, she wouldn't be so stupid as to leave the original plates on a stolen bike, and had more than likely changed them by now.

Thus far, Callie seemed to be spot on in her assumption since they hadn't received any calls from police saying they had arrested the thief.

Tension in the _Ark_ grew, the happy feelings curdling. When the question why Danny had left was asked, it had been Jazz who had answered, telling them how she and Sunstreaker fought, the bitter words that passed between them.

Callie and her cousins blamed Sunstreaker for her leaving, fair or not, their anger was directed solely at the gold frontliner; it had been his nasty words that had caused the car thief to leave in a huff.

It seemed that whatever upset Callie's delicate senses would in turn upset her seeker guardian, which in turn would upset the trine. Sunstreaker however, would simply ignore the dirty looks the others shot him, wouldn't let it bother him. He had gotten rid of the little glitch and if she was too weak to put up with his comments, then she didn't deserve to be there.

This was a wonderful thing for Sunstreaker really, he got his twin back and life should have returned to normal. _Should have_ however, seemed to be the saying of the year. Sideswipe, upon hearing that it had been his twins' angry words, feeling his twins' deep seeded jealousy and insecurity that had chased his new friend away, had promptly snapped the bond shut in his anger and started recharging in his own berth, if he recharged in their room at all.

No amount of prodding, poking and near begging from Sunstreaker had gotten Sideswipe to soften or peel back the tight block on their bonds. So great was the crimson twin's anger that Sideswipe wouldn't even speak to Sunstreaker, firmly ignoring his twin on all levels.

Sideswipe's reaction made Sunstreaker all the more surly, angry, causing him to snap at anyone who dared get too close, taking it out on everyone around him. It hurt the golden warrior even more because his twin turned his back on him, again choosing the human over him.

The anger, the hurt, the unsettled emotions spread throughout the _Ark_ like a virus, affecting one Autobot after another, as well as the humans one by one, until it all came to a head one morning during breakfast; the small period between the ending night shift and the starting day shift, where almost everyone was present save a few of the command staff and the skeleton crew monitoring for attack.

Callie stormed into the mess hall, a news paper clutched tightly in her hand, Mia and Aleyah nearly jogging to keep up with her quick pace. She marched past her alarmed looking seeker, past the suddenly interested Prime and well past Lennox who was waiting for her to have breakfast with him.

Instead Callie marched right to where Sunstreaker sat alone; his optics pinned on a data pad, ignoring the world around him as the blonde stormed up to him, the news paper crumpling in her small hand. Thundercracker shot to his pedes when he saw Callie, his little charge, marching up to the already unhinged twin, her dark blue eyes narrowed on the golden mech, angry and rage filled.

Hurling the news paper at the Autobot, it barley hit his knee, barley touched him. Yet the room stilled, becoming silent as some watched on in a state of awe and shock as Sunstreaker's icy blue optics slid from his data pad to glare at the foolish human who would dare attack him.

Before he could get a word in, the blonde snapped at him. "You big mouthed bastard!"

Blue optics narrowed, sharp and angry as a deep growl left the frontliner accompanied with the low, heavy rev of a powerful engine. "Watch your tone fleshling."

Thundercracker was suddenly at Callie's side, armor puffed out, weapons humming should the frontliner try anything stupid. Human blue eyes narrowed on the large frontliner, her younger cousins worried and frightened by her side. "You've no idea what you've done!" She hissed up at him.

A silent snarl cut across Sunstreaker's face, angry and hateful as the blonde glared back up at him, unwavering in her stance.

"What are you on about now?"

"Callie." Optimus's smooth voice, calm and patient, interrupted the brewing fight. "Has Danny turned up?"

Her darkened eyes sliding slowly away from the bristling frontliner, Callie turned to look at the Prime, her glance darting for a moment to Lennox before returning to the Optimus. "Sort of." She bent and picked up the scattered newspaper.

Her pretty, petit face formed an angry frown while the other Autobot's gathered around to see what she was holding up. Sunstreaker felt a pang of sadness as his crimson twin shouldered his way behind Skywarp, the bond still blocked, still ignoring his sullen twin.

Optimus sighed, and Lennox groaned at the headline that Callie presented them. "But I know that she is pissed."

The headline read ' _Thieves targeting Yellow cars in the Las Vegas area_ '.

"No doubt that whoever she's working with, or for, she's told them to go after yellow cars just so she can watch them be torn apart." Callie hissed; her voice angry and cold.

"Or to tear it apart herself." Mia added, her voice unusually small and hesitant, not wanting to upset her cousin any more, her own worry for her sister feeding into Callie's.

The blonde sighed, her eyes shooting to Thundercracker and he could see her worry, her fear and it renewed his anger towards not only Danny, but Sunstreaker as well.

Suddenly blue optics rolled, and Sunstreaker snorted, his massive arms crossing over his chest. "That's speculation that she's there. There's no proof she's even in Vegas."

Callie spun back around to face the golden mech, her face one again contorted into rage. "Are you kidding!? She's stealing yellow cars and pretending it's you! Don't be so damned delusional!"

Sunstreaker snarled down at the girl, causing Thundercracker's engine to rumble in anger, taking a step closer to his human charge, his calm face unable to hide his flaring EM field and anger.

"I'm not yellow." Sunstreaker hissed at the girl, knowing his argument was petty at best. "I'm gold."

Callie blinked up at him, her anger melting into stunned disbelief. "Really! Really Sunstreaker? You're fucking gold!" her head shook, blond hair pulled back into a short pony tail swinging back and forth, "Bloody moron."

Huffing, the blonde pushed past the tightly knitted group, marching back towards the exit of the mess hall with her cousins and Lennox hot on her heels. The seeker trine, Sideswipe, Optimus and surprisingly Smokescreen, hesitated for a moment, giving the humans a moment to get ahead so that the smaller beings wouldn't have to run to keep up them before following them. Meanwhile, Blaster ushered everyone else back to their meals.

Tossing another angry look over her shoulder, Callie pinned a glare at Sunstreaker. "I'm going to have to clean up your mess now. Thanks a lot _Sunstreaker_."

Bristling, Sunstreaker chased after her, his armor shifting in his anger. "Wait one second! What do you mean _my mess_?"

Not bothering to slow her pace, Callie snapped. "Well it's your fault that she left and we can't leave her out there. No doubt the little idiot will get herself killed! So I'm going to have to go find her now! So yeah, your fault and I'm fixing it."

Sunstreaker snarled, but Thundercracker cut in while he had the chance. "You're not going to Vegas alone." His tone was calm as they followed the girls march to the front of the _Ark_ , the whole group stopping at the mouth of the ship.

Callie frowned up at her guardian and his flanking trine mates. "We can't leave her out there." Her worry now bled through her initial anger. "Vegas may be our city, but there are still a lot of people out there who would kill her because of the work she's done."

"Those same people," Starscream surprised everyone by adding. "Would aim to hurt you as well." Red optics flicked to his blue trine mate, worry seeping through the trine bonds.

Sideswipe, standing next to Skywarp piped up. "Then I'll go."

Everyone turned to look up at the crimson mech with surprise, the hurt in Sunstreaker echoed through the empty bond once again, disappointed that comfort didn't instantly echo back.

Confused, and not feeling his twins upset, Sideswipe blinked at the perplexed looks the others were giving him. "What? I like Danny and I've been worried too. So if Callie can't go find her, I will."

Optimus nodded, scratching at his face mask in thought. "It would be ideal to send Sideswipe. He would be able to calm her enough to escort her back."

Callie sighed again, her small shoulders drooping. "Thanks Sides, but I don't think you'd find her."

The crimson mech frowned, his metal brows pulling in his confusion and it increased Sunstreaker's annoyance. "She's just a human, I'm sure anyone of us could find her."

Callie's livid gaze landed on the frontliner. "Unless you know where to look, you'd never find her."

Sunstreaker's heavy engine rumbled, low and angry but he was ignored as Sideswipe questioned the human. "Then how would I look for her?"

Callie sighed, glancing down. "It would depend on who hired her. If she's working free lance for a chop shop, who knows where she is, she'd be all over the city. But if she's picked up a couple of contracts, she's likely to only be in one area of the city."

Mia huffed as well, her thin arms crossing under her bosom. "And if the newspaper was right, she'll be doing a mix of both, so she'll be all over the city."

Lennox frowned, brows furrowing. "What about a schedule? Will she have a routine?"

Callie and Mia shared a look while Aleyah shifted uncomfortably, it was Mia who answered. "No. We could never keep a regular schedule. If we had we would have been traceable to other gangs, crews, and the police. So she'll be working at all hours of the day and will work until she drops, then sleep."

"And she'll find the smallest, crappiest motel to crash in. One where she'll pay with cash and no one will ask questions." Callie added.

Starscream frowned, red optics focusing on Callie. "Where would she get the cash? She left with nothing."

Callie and Mia shared another glance before the blonde looked back up at the seeker leader, surprised that he had taken an interest, more than likely on behalf of his trine mate. "Probably from the first job she pulled. She would have done something quick that would get her enough money to pay for some kind of lodging, a bit of food and some throw away clothes that she could wear while she's working."

"So, what you're really saying is…" Skywarp suddenly added, his own little frown present on his face plates. "That we have no way to track her, since she'll be using cash and knows the city better than us. And being all over the place at all hours of the day, by the time we get wind of where she might be, she'll be long gone when we get there."

"Basically." Callie confirmed. "But I, at least, will know where she is likely going to be. I know which people she will go to for work. I am the most logical choice to go find Danny."

"No." Thundercracker said firmly, his helm shaking, "It's too dangerous." He nodded to the crimson frontliner. "Sideswipe can find her."

"Thundercracker." Callie sighed, her shoulders drooping low again. "I've managed to stay alive for this long without you constantly guarding me. I think I could survive a few days."

The blue seeker shifted uncomfortably, his helm shaking in the negative again. "No. It's still too dangerous." _And I'd spend the whole time worried sick about you._

One didn't have to be a mind reader, or a trine member to know that the lieutenant wouldn't let Callie go alone.

"You can't go with her." Starscream said firmly, regret filling the bond between them despite his hard words. "We are still not accepted among the Autobot ranks, it will only further push us out if you leave now. Besides, Lennox wants us to _keep a low profile_. A blue jet doing flybys over a major city is not what I would call low profile."

Thundercracker frowned at his trine leader, his upset clear along the trine and the spark bonds.

"Then _I'll_ go find her." Sideswipe emphasized, his servo spreading over his red chest plates. "Danny likes me. She won't bolt if it's just me."

Mia looked up at the crimson twin. "But I don't think you'll find her Side's. Vegas is just too big and busy and she's just one human among thousands." The green eyed girl shook her head, curls bouncing around her face. "It will be hard enough for us to find her, and we know how she works."

Sideswipe frowned, actually upset at the girl's words; words that made Sunstreaker snort and snarl.

"Please! She's just a human, I could slagging find her on my own."

Callie and even Mia glared up at the frontliner, the blonde of the pair snapping, "Please! You wouldn't get within a hundred meters of her!"

The golden maniac snarled back. "She's just a human, it won't be that hard."

"Her being _human_ won't make the task any easier!" Callie snapped.

Optimus watched the human and Sunstreaker bicker; it seemed that the golden mech was squabbling with everyone as of late, including his twin. He didn't respect humans, didn't see their capabilities, he only saw them as a hindrance, a liability.

Perhaps, just perhaps, if Sunstreaker could see that humans could be just as tough as any Autobot, in their own ways, maybe it would sooth the feelings of the last few days. It would give the golden mech sometime away from his twin and would serve to tracking down Danny.

"Then you will go look for her Sunstreaker." Optimus said simply, stopping all arguments.

The golden frontliner stalled, freezing at his Prime's words. "W…what?"

Optimus grinned behind his mask as his words seemed to stall even Starscream. "If you believe that tracking down a human will be such an easy task, then you will find her and bring her home, alive and unharmed."

Everyone blinked before they all started trying to yell over one another in order to protest the Prime's orders. All except Starscream, who had burst into fits of laughter, unable to stop at the ridiculousness of it all.

But, Optimus saw something in Sunsreaker, knew there was a part of him that yearned for a friend of his own. The front liner was softer than the outer armor he let everyone else see, more sensitive if his fight with his twin was any anything to go by. Optimus believed that if they would just both calm down, they had the ability to get along and he hoped this would help achieve that.

Either that or it would all blow up in his face, but it was the risk he was taking.

The Prime held up his servos, silencing all except Starscream who was almost bent double as he gasped and wheezed for air while he laughed. As everyone else stopped arguing, Optimus glanced at the tri-colored seeker and cleared his throat, pulling his attention.

"Sorry! Sorry Prime. Just, I thought you had actually suggested that you send Sunstreaker to fetch Danny." The seeker smirked at the Prime, daring him to say it again.

"I did Starscream." Optimus glanced down at Callie before pinning the gold mech with a hard look, "And Sunstreaker will fulfill his duty to the best of his ability. He will bring Danny back to the _Ark_ unharmed, understand?" The question aimed at the frontliner.

An unhappy sound that could have been a snarl rumbled from the frontliner, but Sunstreaker jerked his chin to the Prime in an almost nod, firmly ignoring how his twin gaped at him.

"And when he fails?" Callie snapped, sounding angry.

" _If_ he fails Callie, I will accompany you to look for her." Optimus said firmly, putting an end to all arguments.

Sideswipe stared at his twin in bewilderment as Sunstreaker snapped at Callie. "She's human! How hard is it really going to be?"

Callie grinned up at him, cold and cruel. "Vegas is Danny's city Sunstreaker. She's going to chew you up and spit you out."

"And stomp on you just for good measure." Aleyah snapped suddenly, hostile and angry.

"And scrape you off the bottom of her shoe like the piece of shit you are." Mia added, her voice light and airy, even cheerful.

Starscream's mouth actually dropped open at the girl's words as Sunstreaker growled down at her, his servos balling into tight fists of rage.

" _Enough!_ " Optimus suddenly snapped, ending all the smirks, all the arguments. "Sunstreaker, will you be able to handle this?"

Sunstreaker snorted; his blue optics cold and icy on Callie, Mia and Aleyah. "It'll be no problem Prime. I'll have the little glitch back in a few days."

With one last glare, this time directed at his twin, Sunstreaker nodded to the Prime and dropped into his alt mode, speeding off for the gate. The small group watched on as the frontliner rocketed out of the NEST compound and down the same road Danny had used to get to the highway.

Smokescreen reminded everyone he was there as he laughed suddenly. "I bet you one hundred US dollars that he doesn't get Danny back without damage."

Callie snorted. "I'll put two hundred down that says Danny kicks Sunstreaker's ass."

Mia laughed, watching the retreating gold form. "Add another hundred into that!"

Sideswipe frowned, watching his twins' form became a spec before disappearing from sight. Guilt at being so angry with Sunstreaker for so long consumed his spark. "Perhaps I should go with him Optimus?"

"No Sideswipe, this will be good for Sunstreaker. He needs to be able to do these things on his own." Optimus said gently. Sideswipe glanced back at the empty desert sadly before retreating back inside of the _Ark_.

Optimus sighed as he watched the crimson twin slink back into the ship, sad and hurting. It tore at Optimus a little, but this was for the best, that much the Autobot leader was sure.

Smokescreen laughed again, drawing the Prime's attention to the others in the group. "So, two hundred from Callie, one hundred from Mia, one fifty from Aleyah and one fifty from Lennox, all on Danny?"

The humans all grinned up at Smokescreen while Thundercracker glared; bright crimson optics pinned on the Praxian. Giving another sigh, Optimus shook his helm at them while Starscream slid next to the Prime.

"Younglings, Prime. Younglings."

Keeping his optics on the group, Optimus calmly replied. "I am more aware of that fact than you realise Starscream."

The seeker laughed again, causing the Prime to shake his helm as the humans and Smokescreen worked out the betting pools on the Danny vs. Sunstreaker drama that had suddenly unfolded.

()()()

**To Be Continued**


	2. Let The Games Begin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Important Information
> 
> "Blah" Speaking
> 
> ::Blah:: comm. link
> 
> 'Blah'bonded speech
> 
> 'Blah' thinking
> 
> Astrosecond- 2.5 earth Seconds
> 
> Klik- 150 earth seconds/ 2.5 earth Minutes
> 
> Orn- 150 earth minutes/ 2.5 earth Hours
> 
> Joor- 60 earth hours/2.5 earth Days
> 
> Metacycle- 17.5 earth days/2.5 earth Weeks
> 
> Vorn- 10 earth weeks/2.5 earth months
> 
> Stellercycle-30 earth months/2.5 years
> 
> Breem-slang for a moment/minute.
> 
> Night Cycle: star down to star up
> 
> Day Cycle: Star up to star down
> 
> Authors Note: Phew finally done! I'm going to apologise in advance for the late posting and the future late postings. I am always working on this story, but seeing as convention season is starting my time is divided between work, writing, and getting my cosplay put together. And seeing as I've only a few months to finish my costume and all the time in the world to work on this story, most of my time is being eaten up by my costume. So please be patient with the updates, I promise they will be coming.
> 
> As always, a massive thank you to DarknessRising10, who beta'd this chapter! You did such a wonderful job with everything we had discussed and I love how you caught all my loose stings and nonsensical writings. And that little bit of science-ie stuff. Without you, this chapter would not have come out nearly as well.
> 
> Disclaimer: I own only my OC's, nothing else.

Sunstreaker rolled along the Las Vegas strip, angry and annoyed. He decided, upon entering the city, that he hated it. There were too many people in such a small amount of space, all shoving and pushing against each other, drunk out of their minds and walking with alcohol down the street, dropping it and splashing it all over the place.

It made Sunstreaker's plating crawl with disgust. The humans here reminded him of the videos of ants that Hound liked to show, the ones where a swarm of them would come from one of their dirt hills and horde on their catch as they ripped apart what they were eating; these humans would flock from their hotels to the streets and drink their faces off to the point of falling down.

Disgusted, Sunstreaker pulled his plating as close to his protoform as he physically could in his alt form while he rolled into a parking spot, killing his engine with a disgruntled sigh, cringing as several humans brushed past him. Primus, he hated humans. They were no better than bugs that were slowly killing their own planet.

A snarl rumbled from Sunstreaker, drawing the attention of several passers-by. Here he was, fighting to get his planet back, fighting to revive it, and here they were destroying their own. Their planet meant nothing to them; they didn't appreciate it as they should. They had no concept of what would happen should their pretty blue and green ball ever did die, like Cybertron had.

Taking a deep vent, Sunstreaker forced himself to relax, pushing his dark thoughts from his processor in order to concentrate on his mission, finding Danny. Knowing the little glitch was stealing gold and yellow cars, he would lure her to him with his own beautiful frame.

She would come to him, would try to steal him and he would drag her kicking and screaming back to the _Ark_ if he had to, then Optimus could deal with her. Then he could make things up with his twin, get back to normal; his hurt that his twin had turned his back on him still stinging at his spark. He would prove to Sideswipe as well, that he was not as useless as everyone believed him to be. Settling down, his plating stopping its mad twitching, and Sunstreaker lay in wait.

The little thief would come to him, and all his problems would end at last.

()()()

Leaning against the orange wall of the _Ark,_ the desert sun beating down on his spread wings, Starscream vented a sigh as he watched Skywarp and Sideswipe, listening to their strained laughter as they tried to entertain Lucy and Annabelle.

Danny's leaving had not only unsettled her family, but Sideswipe as well, and Skywarp was trying to cheer his new play mate up by distracting him with the little girls. They, at least, could provide some form of entertainment to the two mechs as they all worried.

Venting another sigh, Starscream glanced to where Thundercracker sat _in the dirt_ like some ground pounder with Callie. His trine mate was trying with everything in him to cheer his little charge up as the blonde fretted over her foolish cousin. Thus far, not even the calm demeanour of the blue seeker had managed to crack past Callie's never ending worry.

Plating shifting on his frame, opening wider to the hot sun, his EM field reached out, but he was nowhere near close enough to his trine mates and once again, Starscream forced his jealousy and insecurity down. He had no reason to be jealous of Sideswipe, or Callie and Lucy, they had nothing on him; he was part of their trine, far more important than just some friend or charge.

They were trying too, Thundercracker and Skywarp, trying so hard to prove to him that they wanted to be a part of his trine still, and that they still respected him as a trine leader. Loved him as a brother. They spent more time with him, not just running off to their shared quarters for their alone time, and they made sure they flew together once a day as well as taking at least one meal all together.

Yet Thundercracker still had Callie as his friend and Skywarp had Sideswipe; they had both, once again, managed to achieve something he could not. To put it simply, they had managed to make a friend outside of the trine, outside of their own caste and even outside of their own species. Once again, Starscream was left floundering on his own as he tried to fit in with their new allies.

Some friendships amongst the Autobots had been alive for eons and some cliques had lost too many of their numbers to easily add another to their midst; even more had lost their own at seeker servos. Flicking a wing, Starscream tried not to think of how many seekers had died at Autobot servos; they were trying to do better here. Get along. Be _Prime's Decepticons._

It was a load of scrap as far as Starscream was concerned, he doubted that the peace would last forever, but with burning the bridge back to the _Nemesis,_ they couldn't go back there. Besides, Starscream wouldn't take his trine back to Megatron, not after all that had happened.

Worry and even fear rolled in Starscream's tanks as he watched Thundercracker and Skywarp, so at ease amongst the Autobots and humans. The trine leader didn't know what he would do if things fell apart with the Autobots, he had no place to take his trine, no place to keep them safe.

Heaving a sigh, Starscream tried not to ponder that line of thought too much. Things were going well for them for once and he certainly didn't want to jinx it when their tanks were full for the first time in vorns, and their frames in top working order. The Autobots simply had one thing that Megatron did not, human aid. In exchange for protection, the humans would _give_ the Autobots what they needed to distil energon, as well as the necessary metals to create proper armor and weapons that the Decepticons simply couldn't fabricate.

Shuddering, Starscream wondered what would happen if Megatron ever got his helm out of his aft and found humans to help him. Humans like him, humans that could be bought. Shaking that thought from his processor, Starscream brushed it off. It was an insane thought. Megatron would never contact humans in order to set up a business deal. Even if he would double cross the humans in the end, the Decepticon leader thought the species too far below him to use that way.

A small, soft voice drew Starscream from his dark musings. "Hello Starscream."

Venting yet another sigh, annoyed and exasperated more than anything else, Starscream's crimson optics drew down to the small green eyed girl by his pede. "Mia." He nodded with forced politeness.

The human smiled up at him, not quite hiding her surprise over the fact that he had actually greeted her as often he didn't bother. Since saving her life, she seemed to be under the impression that they would be _friends_ now, not unlike Callie and Thundercracker. Yet, unlike his trine mate, he had no interest in being friends with a human, even if he had saved her life.

A fairly ironic contradiction, feeling left out by his trine when they made their own little friends, and the single being who actually _wanted_ to try to be his friend, he wanted nothing to do with. It wasn't that he disliked Mia, per say, but the girl carried bad memories for him just by sight of her alone.

Old memory echoes of pain and agony, of Megatron tearing his wings from his back, leaving him helpless and grounded because he had saved her, always surfaced in his processor whenever she was near. The human femme however, didn't seem to get the hint and leave him be.

No matter how cruel and nasty his remarks to her where, everything from her hair colour, to her weight, to the weakness of her species, seemed to phase her perpetual state of happiness. When he brought the issue up with Thundercracker, hoping that he could talk to Callie who in turn, would talk Mia into leaving him alone, his blue trine mate simply grinned at him, saying that the green eyed one only wanted to thank him.

Besides, Thundercracker had said, much like Callie, Mia had the ability to see past his scrap and wasn't going to quit. The blue seeker further smirked, telling Starscream that it was high time he made a new friend.

The conversation left Starscream wondering what _scrap_ Thundercracker was talking about.

Grumbling about dumb trine mates and dumb humans, Starscream managed to dredge up enough civility to address the human as politely as he could. "What do you want Mia?"

Bright green eyes blinked up at the tri coloured seeker, a small smile quirking at her lips. "Nothing Starscream. Just enjoying sitting outside with you."

A little stunned by her explanation, his dark helm canting to the side, the seeker glowered down at the girl. "We are not sitting outside together."

Grinning back up at him, as though she knew an ongoing joke he did not, Mia easily said. "Yes we are. You're here sitting outside. I'm here outside. We're outside, together."

"Yes, but we are not doing so _together_." He emphasised the word in hope the daft femme would get it.

She did not, as it would appear. "Yes we are."

Starscream frowned down at her, exasperation and something that was almost amusement flickering through him at her stubbornness. Knowing it was a pointless argument, one that would only lead to the equivalent of a school yard match of "I know you are but what am I?" Starscream let the argument fall flat.

As the seeker turned his helm back to his trine, he didn't notice the flash of disappointment over the green eyed girl's face; she had actually been enjoying their little playful interaction. At least, she thought as she settled next to him, crouching in the sand, he wasn't flying away or yelling at her.

It was almost peaceful, the first time the base had any form of silence or peace since Danny's leaving and Sunstreaker's subsequent orders to bring her home. Leaning against the orange wall of the _Ark_ , Mia sighed, hoping that things would calm down until her sister was either brought home or came home of her own accord.

She doodled in the sand with her fingers as she thought of her moronic sister. Mia had little faith that Sunstreaker would be able to find Danny and bring her home. The thief knew Vegas just as well as any local, knew every road, every back alley. Danny had spent most of her young adulthood avoiding the Los Vegas police department, and it gave her a certain insight into the city; Sunstreaker wouldn't likely get within a hundred yards of her.

A flash of red caught Mia's eyes, and tipping her head to see who else had come out, she frowning with a deep sigh as her shoulders drooped.

Blue optics locked on to the seeker commander as Cliffjumper glared at Starscream from his position at the mouth of the space ship, while the commander continued watched his trine mates. Most of the Autobots seemed to either ignore the seekers or accept their presence as the new norm amongst the _Ark_ , leaving them to get on with things. But not Cliffjumper, no, he was by far the most stubborn and most cruel Autobot Mia had ever met.

For whatever reason, the minibot had a deep seeded hatred towards the seekers, one that went far deeper than any other Autobot, more so then even the grumpy Brawn. Cliffjumper didn't just dislike the seekers, he _despised_ them, loathed them. The minibot purposely went out of his way to pick fights with the seekers, his small, nasty voice reminding them how they weren't really welcome here. Then, when they finally snapped, he acted as though the seekers were at fault, that he knew all along that they were unhinged.

In short, Mia was not particularly fond of Cliffjumper. She wouldn't go as far as to hate the minibot, as Callie, Danny and even Aleyah would, as the green eyed girl just didn't see the reason in wasting so much energy on hate. She would leave her sisters and cousin to do the hating; she was always the naturally happy one anyway.

Yet, as Cliffjumper stormed over to the seeker, Mia felt her belly roll in dread and unease; despite being so much smaller than most on the _Ark_ , Cliffjumper was still much larger than her. Shifting, worry eating away at her, Mia slowly stood, taking a step towards the tri colour seeker.

"Starscream..."

Hearing the almost fear in the human's tone, sensing her sudden unease, the flyer tipped his helm towards her, following her gaze to the little red mech that stormed angrily up to him. Plating pulling in hard, Starscream stood a little taller, wings flaring wide to make him seem larger and as he ground his denta, he tasted metal shavings in his mouth.

"Mia." Starscream's tone was tense, underlined with the equally deep seeded hate he had for the little, horned minibot.

"Yeah?" Her voice was small, hesitant as she took another step towards the much larger seeker.

"Go find Prime or Ironhide." Starscream ordered; his crimson optics bright as they narrowed on the ball of angry Autobot that stormed up to him.

The Decepticon commander knew that searching for Prowl or Jazz would be useless. With the report that Jazz had delivered, the fear it brought with it, Jazz was likely still curled around his mate, exhausted and sated after his time away.

Other than the sub commanders, the only others that could even minutely control the little red minibot where the Prime or Ironhide; all others would be mocked, attacked and ostracized by the tight pack of minibots.

Starscream, simply refused to deal with Cliffjumper's immaturity today, he was too tired and too weary. Sending Mia to fetch one of the minibots superiors would not only put her out of harm's way, and when he started to care about that, Starscream was unsure but he blamed Thundercracker solely for that, but it would also ensure that someone _else_ would deal with the usually loud mouthed minibot.

Green eyes blinked, worried, at Cliffjumper while her small head nodded as she swallowed hard. "Are you going to be okay?"

Suddenly picking up on Starscream's own unease, Thundercracker and Skywarp had stopped what they were doing, turning their attention to their commander, optics bright and sharp, dangerous as they watched.

Sideswipe's heavy engine rumbled dangerously in his chest; given the choice the frontliner would side with his new friend. From below Thundercracker, Callie glared at the moving Autobot while Sideswipe eased Lucy and Annabelle behind him.

Nodding, Starscream crossed his arms over his cockpit, his gaze steady on the Autobot. "I'll be fine. Go Mia." There was no denying the order from the seeker.

Sensing the brewing fight, Mia gave a small nod before fleeing to the _Ark_ , giving the much larger than her Cliffjumper a wide berth before she darted into the ship, hurrying to find someone larger and calmer to deal with what was coming.

Cliffjumper didn't even blink an optic as Mia fled, ignoring the human as she ran for help, Starscream the sole focus of his anger.

Settling back on the heels of his thrusters, Starscream crossed his arms tighter over his cock pit, letting his optics grow cold as he focused on the Autobot. "What can I do for you Cliffjumper?"

The minibot snarled at Starscream's cold politeness, his baring denta blunt and polished in his snarling mouth. "I don't know what you're up to Starscream, but I'm on to you! I know there's something going on here."

Heaving a dramatic sigh, Starscream rolled crimson optics while he shook his helm. "Go away Cliffjumper, before something awful happens to you."

Ignoring the pointed look the seeker commander gave him, Cliffjumper snarled at the larger mech. "You mean before something awful happens to you!"

Starscream cocked a metal brow, looking unimpressed by the heated words. "You're an idiot." He sighed, exasperated.

Turning to leave, Starscream fully intended to let the conversation drop, no harm no foul, when Cliffjumper's hot angry words bit out. "If I'm the idiot, why does your trine hate you?" The angry words carrying over to his watching trine mates, his cruel taunt a calling to them like blood is to sharks in the water.

Starscream spun to face the minibot, anger and hurt warring for his spark, heat rising up from his chest and into his dark face. His arms dropped to his side, null rays humming with raw energy as his servos balled into angry fists.

Over the trine bond _something_ jerked, something deep and angry and over protective; it flexed outwards from Thundercracker and Skywarp, the bonded pair feeling his sudden spark deep hurt at the Autobot's thoughtless words.

Fully intending on saying, 'watch your tone minibot', Starscream never had the chance when he heard the tell-tale _VOP_ of Skywarp teleporting, appearing in a purple flash of light in front of his trine leader.

Acting purely on instinct, Starscream wrapped his arms around his younger trine mate's waist and hauled him back as the purple seeker hissed, claws flaring out at Cliffjumper, not quite hitting their intended target.

"Skywarp calm down!" Starscream hissed, his heavy jet engine rumbling as he poured more power into his arms, thanking Primus that his trine mate hadn't simply shot the red menace in the face.

The purple seeker ignored his trine leader's commanding words, instinct driving Skywarp to protect Starscream from all threats. They had failed him once; they would not do so again. Struggling against the older seeker's tight grip, a string of curses, both human and Cybertronian, left the teleporter's mouth like an easy flow of a river. Promises of death and pain accompanied those harsh words, all directed to the red Autobot.

Cliffjumper laughed, enraging Skywarp all the more, increasing his struggling against his commanders hold to throttle the Autobot; Starscream noted with morbid amusement that even the brave Cliffjumper had taken a step back from the much larger seeker.

"What's wrong _Sky_ , don't like the truth?" Cliffjumper mocked, knowing Starscream wouldn't let Skywarp go otherwise the teleporter would end up in the brig once again.

"Watch your mouth Autobot!" The youngest seeker hissed, still trying to break Starscream's death grip.

The minibot laughed darkly, cockily, nearly begging for a seeker fist into his face. From the corner of his ruby optics, Starscream saw Thundercracker stalking closer, wings hiked high and armor puffed out large; his optics icy cold, edging on the point of madness in his anger.

Starscream could feel the change in the pair almost instantly; the change in personality, the warriors within emerging, the ice in their sparks, the need to spread carnage as they tumbled past the killing threshold. The need, the drive to protect their trine mate was thrown into overdrive, especially since in the aftermath of the battle in Los Angeles, the need to prove their worth to their trine leader forcing them to act out in more violent ways.

_Wonderful._ Starscream snarled, not bothering to order Thundercracker to stop, to return to his watching charge, knowing the order would be ignored in his wing mate's current state. Instead, Starscream opened a comm. to Sideswipe. ::Get over here and help me!::

The seeker's tone was angry, edging on panic in his attempt to keep his trine mates under control; he really didn't need this right now, not when their time with the Autobot's was still so short.

An amused tone from the frontliner answered back. ::I could, but watching Sky beat Cliffjumper into the ground would be far more fun.::

:: _Sideswipe!_ ::

The crimson mech winced at the high pitched screechy voice that assaulted his comm. lines, the voice so full of anger, worry at being kicked out of their new home. ::Okay, okay! Keep your wings on, I'm coming.::

The frontliner huffed, tilted his helm down and told the little girls to go to Callie and stay with her, his blue optics tracking them as they ran for the golden haired woman. Shaking his helm, the crimson mech sighed, jogging to catch up to Thundercracker and his angry march.

Slipping in front of the blue hued warrior just as he neared his struggling trine mates, Sideswipe pressed his black servos against the seeker's barrelled chest, an easy grin sliding into place. "Hey TC, easy my mech. No need to rip Cliffjumper a new one. If I'm not allowed to, then neither are you, it's like, part of the Autobot code or something."

The former gladiator actually flinched at the icy chips that had become Thundercracker's optics as they flicked back and forth between Sideswipe and Cliffjumper. "The little slagger has insulted my trine leader and has been harassing my bond mate for weeks. Cliffjumper deserves no mercy, not anymore, not when he's been warned to leave us alone."

Starscream grunted as he struggled to keep Skywarp at bay, the purple seeker hissing and snarling in his commander's hold, desperate to sink his claws into the minibot's frame.

Easy grin still plastered across Sideswipe's face, the Autobot tried to remain as cheerful as he could, despite wanting to watch Skywarp beat Cliffjumper down. Sideswipe knew how much it hurt his new friend when others picked on Starscream, but he also knew Skywarp didn't get their odd Autobot ways of solving their problems in a diplomatic way.

The gladiator tried to help the seeker the best he could, and he would help Starscream calm his trine mates down so they wouldn't end up in the brig for the next few days. "Hey, I agree with you there but let's be honest, if anyone is going to get a swing at old Cliffy, it's going to be me. You've only had to deal with him for what? A few weeks? I've had to deal with his nonsense for eons!"

Ruby optics flicked away again, a silent snarl cutting across Thundercracker's handsome face, but he remained silent, allowing Sideswipe to continue. "So come on TC, let's go calm down before things get out of hand, yeah? Besides, poor Callie has gone through enough with her cousin taking off. Do you really want to cause her anymore undue stress?"

A snarl vibrated from Thundercracker's chest, his servos clenching and unclenching into fists, optics flaring white in his rage, but again, the blue seeker remained silent.

"Of course you don't want to upset her. So come on, let's go calm down a bit." Sideswipe said cheerfully, easing the much larger Cybertronion away from the minibot, surprised with himself that he had managed to talk Thundercracker down from the edge.

Starscream sighed, as he felt the bond lines change once again, returning to a cautious calm as even Skywarp began to calm down. The purple seeker's frame began to relax in his commander's hold as Starscream turned them both away from Cliffjumper, leading them back out to the dessert grounds, back towards Callie and the young girls.

Snarling, Thundercracker also allowed himself to be turned around, stalking back the way he came, angry and twitchy as he stormed back to his anxious charge. Starscream was only beginning to thank his lucky stars that the little encounter had passed over so smoothly, that nothing bad had happened, when Cliffjumper opened his mouth again.

"Oh that's rich Sideswipe! You and your pathetic twin are practically one step away from being Decepticons!" The crimson twin froze in place, glancing over one shoulder with darkening optics, "No wonder you get along so well with the damned seekers."

A nasty grin spread further across Cliffjumper's face and Starscream cursed his blasted luck. "Although, I can't blame you for abandoning your twin."

"I didn't abandon him!" Sideswipe hissed.

Cliffjumper ignored him. "I'd rather hang out with the pathetic little seeker too…"

"Skywarp isn't pathetic."

"…than your crazy twin."

"He's not crazy!" The snarl that came from Sideswipe was undeniable, and it sent Skywarp and Thundercracker barrelling back towards the killing threshold. Against all odds, Sideswipe was Skywarp's friend, and the younger seeker was not going to let the little minibot upset him in anyway.

Grinning, Cliffjumper got a little closer, his voice a rough, mock whisper. "I bet he slaughters your little human friend like the monster that he is."

An eerie calm settled over the crimson twin as he glared with disdain at the red minibot. Sideswipe's blue optics sharpening, darkening to a midnight blue with his blood lust as thoughts of dismantling the little cretin floated through his helm. Although Sunstreaker was too far to comm. and the crimson twin had closed the twin bond, there was always that small part of the golden hued warrior that was always with the older twin; that undeniable, untameable rage.

It was always there, just beneath the surface and although Sideswipe hid it better than his twin, it was there none the less. It was that fury, that temper that had gotten the twins in so much trouble in the past. It was that wrath that would say _screw the diplomatic approach._

It was that anger that, once brought forth, was an unstoppable force, an unmovable object and it was that rage which fuelled what happened next.

Sensing the brewing fight, Starscream manoeuvred himself and Skywarp between Thundercracker and Cliffjumper. The seeker commander knew he had a chance, as slight as it was, to stop his trine mates from stripping the minibot's armor from his frame, there was no chance he'd be able to stop his trine mates _and_ the remaining, rage fuelled twin.

At least with only facing Sideswipe, Cliffjumper had a better chance of surviving what was about to come.

"Call my twin a monster, one. More. Time!" Sideswipe's tone was cold and angry, daring the smaller Autobot to do it.

Starscream prayed to the stars above that Cliffjumper would leave it be, let it go. Anyone with half a processor could see that Sideswipe was angry at himself for hurting his twin, for letting him drive his new little friend away, for not helping them get along. That hurt would turn to rage that needed to be directed in a beat of a spark.

"Your brother…" Cliffjumper's voice was high and mocking. "Is a pit stained monster that deserves to be in chains until he's needed. He should be locked away in a dark cell like the bastardized dog he is."

Skywarp snarled, his frame tense in his commander's arms, too angry to recall that he could teleport from Starscream's hold and rip Cliffjumper's spark from his chest. Starscream felt his jaw drop at the minibot's audacity and part of the seeker wondered if the small red Autobot had a death wish.

Thundercracker's heavy engine revved and Starscream could _feel_ the cobalt seeker's cold glare pinned on the smaller mech. His gaze sent a chill up even his commander's spinal struts, and Starscream had to fight from allowing himself to fall past the killing threshold too, and help the others tear Cliffjumper apart.

A bitter smile that was almost a snarl, all sharp teeth and cold spread across Sideswipe's mouth just as Optimus Prime came charging from the far end of the _Ark_. The large mech skidded to a halt; his blue optics pinned on the two red Autobots before he went charging towards them, arms and legs pumping to get to them before Sideswipe threw the punch that was coming.

Behind him, Ironhide and Prowl came running, Jazz tailing behind his mate at a much more stiff and angry pace; no doubt unhappy that his mate was bolting towards his adoptive charge before he did something stupid. Finally, behind the nearly snarling Autobot third in command, came Mia, her small fleshy body being pushed to the limits in her attempt to keep up with the running Autobot command staff.

Never in his entire life had Starscream been so relieved to see the Prime as he had in that exact moment. Once Sideswiped was soothed, he would be able to calm his trine mates without incident.

Glancing up and seeing the charging Prime coming towards them, Sideswipe's bitter smile didn't lose its edge, if anything it grew wider. Shrugging, as though he were speaking to someone else, the crimson Autobot muttered. "Oh fuck it."

With movement far too fast to track, the black fist was pulled back, Sideswipe's taut frame in the perfect striking position, fist high by his audio horn, frame leaning back in preparation to attack. Grim smile still in place, Sideswipe threw his fist as fast and as hard as he could, the black servo barrelling towards Cliffjumper's grinning, mocking face.

The minibot didn't have the chance to even duck as the fist slammed into his smirking face plates, cracking the steel that lay beneath the protective silicon on impact, a sickening crunch echoing loud. Starscream sighed when his young trine mate laughed as Cliffjumper fell to the ground.

Thundercracker snarled again as his mate laughed, servos balling and unballing, itching to slam his own fist into the cruel little Autobot's face plates as well. The only thing that kept him on the spot was the silent order from his trine leader, the feeling of worry, even fear from Starscream, kept his own wrath at bay.

Yet even he grinned inwardly as Cliffjumper crashed to the ground, cursing and spiting at the larger mech who put him there.

Engine rumbling unhappily, high and angry, energy and anger that needed an outlet crackled over crimson plating as Sideswipe stalked towards Cliffjumper; like a wild cat stalking its prey, ready to kill, maim what he considered a threat.

Starscream tensed further, his grip on Skywarp tightening as Skywarp's own rage at being the target of Cliffjumper's actions for their duration with the Autobots came to the forefront of the seeker's processor; his rage feeding into and taking from the Autobot frontliner's wrath.

Having no doubt in his processor that if given half the chance, Sideswipe would have dismantled Cliffjumper, Starscream was beyond grateful that the Prime had caught him in time before the frontliner could further damage the downed mech. Barrelling up beside the frontliner, Optimus' thick, dull red arm caught Sideswipe around the waist.

Using his momentum, the Prime hauled the former gladiator away from Cliffjumper, going as far as to put his large, bulky frame between the two snarling Autobots. As the others caught up, Sideswipe's plating bristled once before smoothing out over his protoform, calming despite the deep, ragged vents that tore from his chest.

Ironhide caught up next, hauling the minibot to his pedes. Cliffjumper held onto the spot that Sideswipe had hit, brightly coloured energon seeping between his digits as he nursed the wound. Sighing, the old warrior held the minibot in place as he attempted to have another go at his comrade before he was hauled back another few steps just to be on the safe side.

Prowl caught up then, stalking past Cliffjumper to stand between the two spitting Autobots, his icy blue optics sliding from the minibot to the frontliner and then finally Jazz, a silent, swelling ball of dark anger, black rage, stood behind his bonded.

Mia ran past them all, ran to the one mech she trusted the most, pressing her small squashy body against Starscream's armored thrusters, taking comfort in his size and strength. "I'm sorry Starscream. I couldn't find Optimus or Ironhide and I didn't know what to do, so I went to Prowl and Jazz's room. But I think Jazz is really mad that I disturbed them, 'cause Prowl bolted when I told him what was happening, but I didn't know what to do!"

"Mia hush." Starscream said quietly, his voice uncharacteristically smooth and soft in his attempt to quell the girl's frightened rambling. Tensions were running high and hot, anything could set the former gladiator or the minibot off again, and what they really needed was calmness.

The green eyed girl fell silent, still fidgeting against his heel. Crimson optics flickered to where Callie stood watching with Lucy and Anna, shifting from one foot to the other as she tried to decide if she was better use up close or would just be a hindrance.

Again, the need to protect Mia and Callie, the latter due to Thundercracker's own want to protect his little charge, rose up in a confusing swell from Starscream's spark. He didn't know why he cared about the little red headed femme, but he did and he didn't want to see harm come to her; despite the mixed emotions she brought forth.

He had worked so hard to keep her alive during the battle of L.A, he couldn't allow that hard work be for nothing. Starscream mused as to why he worried about the girl so. Pushing those thoughts aside, Starscream's crimson optics bore down into the girl at his pede. "Mia, go to your cousin and stay with her."

Fear shot through the green orbs that gazed up at him, wide and open like a book, easily read. "Starscream, I don't want to."

"Go Mia." He said firmly as he lifted his optics back up to carefully watch the two red Autobots.

"But…" The human hesitated, her tiny fingers digging into a transformation seam closest to her small hands. "But I'm scared." She managed to whisper only loud enough for him to hear, Skywarp too far gone into his madness to bother listening.

Starscream frowned down at her, his helm tilting as he regarded her. Licking his lips, he took a vent, trying to remain calm for her as well as his trine mates. "I know you are." he told her. "But you need to be brave and go over to Callie. You'll be far safer with her."

"But…"

"You'll be safer away from here and the brawling Autobots. Now get going!" Starscream ordered, voice firm, leaving no room for argument.

Mia stayed where she was, her large fear filled eyes pinned on his large frame, the only Cybertronian that had ever thought she was worthy of saving. Her fear kept her frozen where she was, afraid she wouldn't make it to Callie.

Venting, knowing there were more pressing issues that needed his attention, only half listening to Prowl as he tore into both Sideswipe and Cliffjumper, something about behaviour unbefitting Autobots and how they had to tread carefully now that the human population knew of their existence. Skywarp shifted in his hold again, wings twitching madly, clawed digits digging at blue forearms; the purple seeker hanging onto every word the Autobot SIC said, grinning.

Despite the calm that had come over the two combatants, Starscream knew as well as everyone else that given half the chance, either Cliffjumper or Sideswipe would start brawling in a human heartbeat, endangering the fleshy femme by his pede.

Dropping his optics again, holding Mia's large green eyes, Starscream continued to use the soothing, yet rough voice that seemed to be calming her. "You are going to run." The seeker ordered, using every ounce of authority he had within his frame.

The trembling lower lip firmed up as she nodded up at him despite the fear that shone in the green eyes that were pinned on him, taking in everything he said. "You're going to run as fast and as hard as you can to your cousin, and stay there until Sideswipe and Cliffjumper are separated, understand?"

Another nod came from the human, her small body tense and ready, every small muscle pulled taut as she prepared to do as he ordered and run for Callie. "You're going to do it on the count of three, okay?"

Waiting for the bob of her small head, her loose hair flying around her as she waiting for the order, Starscream started. "One."

If at all possible, her body became more ridged as her breathing slowed down to an eerily calm pace; as afraid as she truly was, Mia trusted _him_ to keep her safe once again.

"Two."

A frightening prospect, if Starscream allowed himself to dwell on such thoughts, but he really didn't have the time for that.

"Three."

As though his voice was a shot from a gun, a signal that the race had begun, Mia shot off like a rocket towards her cousin. Her small arms pumping in time with her legs; trust in her hero's words giving her the confidence to do it, but fear of being killed made her quick.

Still tuning out all others around him, the seeker watched the human run the whole way from him to her cousin, not turning his attention away until she was safely collapsing in Callie's arms, exhausted by her sudden burst of movement.

Nodding to himself, knowing Mia was now safely away from what could easily become a battle ground, Starscream tuned back into Prowl's heated words, only catching the end of what was being said as the Prime kept his frontliner at bay and Ironhide kept the minibot from attacking.

"As I have stated before, I do not care who started it." The Praxian's icy optics slid from one Autobot to the other. "I truly do not. What I do care about is the safety of this base and all who reside within it. I am sick of the infighting, and it ends today."

There was no denying Prowl's anger; the tilt to his wings, the shift in his hips as he glanced at the two Autobots. The Prime took the back seat on this one, allowing Prowl to handle the dressing down he had just handed out to his subordinates, the rest of command staff very aware of how angry Jazz was as he loomed in the back ground. "Megatron will defeat us if we continue to allow these petty differences continue to divide us, so again I say _it ends today_."

The black and white mech turned to each of the commanders restraining the still angry red mechs. "I trust that you will deal with Cliffjumper Ironhide?"

"Of course!" The old mech grumbled; disappointment and anger clear in his tone. "Me and Cliffy here are gonna have a nice long o' chat I think."

"Good." Prowl nodded, firm and unrelenting as always. "And Prime, will you deal with Sideswipe?"

Normally Prowl would deal with his wayward charges, having been the one to get past their armor, their rock solid defences so often in the past. Today however, was only Jazz's second day back on base, barely awake from his first easy recharge since returning, and the bonded pair needed their time alone.

This was something the Prime understood, and gladly accepted the responsibility of dealing with his subordinate. Sideswipe also understood that Prowl would need his alone time with Jazz, that the saboteur had been away on a hard mission and returned baring bad news. Jazz needed his alone time with Prowl just as much right now, needed to curl up tight next to his bonded and eventually sink into Prowl's calm, steady spark and decompress from what he had witnessed.

Knowing all this, Sideswipe suddenly felt shame creeping in from the edges of his processor. He didn't want to ruin what little time Prowl and Jazz had together, certainly didn't want to be the main cause of that any more than he already had.

Prowl had sacrificed so much more for him and his twin than anyone else, and it burned like an acid wash to Sideswipe's spark to think he had caused his guardian such strife with his bonded. It was for that reason alone that the crimson mech stepped back from the killing threshold and regaining control over his anger, calming himself down as quickly as he could.

Dark crimson plating settled along his protoform as he relaxed, accepting his punishment, whatever the Prime may decide that may be.

Sensing the change within his frontliner, Optimus eased his hold on the crimson mech, loosening his hold from around his thin waist, yet not trusting him enough to fully release yet. "I will deal with Sideswipe." He glanced down at the bowed helm below his chin, feeling the sudden shift in Sideswipe's EM field, felt the shame that he felt at being the cause of Prowl's disruption. "And we will discuss the appropriate punishment for infighting. I believe without Sunstreaker or Danny here to aid in expelling his excess energy, Sideswipe here has too much of it."

The disappointment was clear in the Prime's voice, as clear as it was in the stance of Prowl's tilted wings and it caused Sideswipe's shoulders to hunch in shame. He didn't want his twin to be angry at him, he didn't want Danny to be angry at Sunny, and he certainly didn't want to disappoint his Prime or his guardian.

Prowl nodded, face grim. "Good." He said firmly before his blue optics slid to Starscream.

The seeker's wide white wings arched a little higher, fear that Prowl would assign someone else to deal with his angered trine. Instead, the tactician's calm words said. "Starscream, I trust that you will speak with your trine in regards to fighting."

His words were not challenging, but that of a commander asking, ensuring, that his subordinate would deal with his own unit properly. Part of Starscream rankled at the thought of another ordering him to do anything, having been only second to Megatron for so long. Yet Prowl's words were not cruel or demeaning, like Megatron's would have been.

"Of course Prowl. But I would like to point out that in every altercation between my seekers and your Autobots, my mechs have never been the cause of the fight."

Prowl's helm canted. "I both realise and appreciate this. Although if that fact changes, they will be joining the others in the brig, like Cliffjumper and Sideswipe will both be doing tonight. Yet, I would appreciate it if you would continue to ensure they understand this fact."

Starscream nodded, while turning and shoving Skywarp behind him with his bonded. "I will."

Prowl nodded his thanks as Cliffjumper shouted from behind once again. "What!? Why am I going to the brig!? I didn't do anything!"

Like a silent wraith, Prowl turned, icy optics hardening as he regarded the minibot. "You will be going to the brig after your chat with Ironhide, and visit with Ratchet, for instigating the fracas, yet again. And I am growing weary of hearing from you time and again Cliffjumper."

Sideswipe, knowing he was going to the brig after his talk with Optimus for fighting, since he did after all hit Cliffjumper, no matter how justified it may seem to him, didn't bother arguing with his guardian. He wouldn't cause him any more stress, especially with Jazz barely containing his rage whilst floating on the outskirts of their little skirmish.

Cliffjumper snarled, and Sideswipe winced, waiting for the moment when Jazz snapped. "That's not fair! I was the one who was hit! I didn't even _do_ anything to him!"

The former gladiator's frame stiffened as anger coursed through him as hot as any fire, his mouth opened to argue, to remind the minibot of the cruel words he had carelessly flung about when Jazz, tired and stressed beyond Cliffjumper's comprehension, finally snapped.

"Enough Cliffjumper! For pit's sake, enough! All ya ever do is instigate fights amongst nearly every slagging mech on da base!" Jazz snarled, surprising everyone with the intensity of his anger, his sheer fury forcing the seekers and Sideswipe to back away from their own anger.

"Ya do it ta Sunny an' Side's all da slagging time! An' Ah am frankly sick ta death ov' it! And ya've been treatin' da seekers da same since they got here! It ends _taday_ Cliffjumper, da ya understand meh!?" The Autobot TIC snapped, his visor midnight blue with his rage.

"But…" Cliffjumper tried; his voice suddenly much smaller than it had been before.

"No buts Cliffjumper!"

"Yeah okay! Okay fine Jazz, whatever you say." Cliffjumper muttered, his voice losing its edge in the face of the saboteur's anger.

Frowning, Prowl calmly walked to his mate, placing a servo on his blocky shoulder. "Calm down."

The darkened visor flashed before turning fully to black. "Ah will not calm down! Ah've barely been back on base fer two days, and Ah've already broken up as many fights. Enough is enough Prowl! This infighting is gonna get someone killed!" he hissed.

"Jazz I know." Prowl tried to sooth his mate, without success.

"Ah'm going back ta my berth, and yer coming wit' meh." Jazz stated, in the calmest tone he could muster.

Prowl's frown turned regretful. "Jazz perhaps I should stay and…"

Whatever Prowl was going to suggest he stay and do was lost to his mate as Jazz snarled a clear "No!"

Without warning, the saboteur's servo shot up and snatched his mate's blood red chevron, curling his powerful digits around the sensitive crest. Prowl hissed as everyone else's optics shot wide at the small black and white mech's actions.

Calmly, as though nothing was amiss, Jazz nodded to Optimus, respectfully bidding his Prime a goodbye before doing the same to Ironhide and Starscream. The saboteur then turned and proceeded to calmly return to the _Ark_ from the way he came, dragging his struggling, angry mate behind him, Prowl cursing and spitting.

No one dared move, even the human femmes who watched from a safe distance, until Jazz dragged Prowl into the _Ark_ , disappearing from sight.

Now calmer, Skywarp's helm tilted in confusion. "What just happened?" He whispered, afraid that if he spoke too loudly, Jazz would come storming back.

It was Sideswipe who answered the stunned seeker, just as surprised himself. "I have no idea." He turned his helm back to the purple seeker, a small grin playing on his lips. "It's not often that Jazz goes off on one though, and it's usually a sight to behold."

Skywarp chuckled, and despite the presence of the commanders, couldn't help but to point out the obvious. "He just dragged your SIC away from here like a bad sparkling who was begging for energon goodies."

Grinning, Sideswipe nodded. "I bet they're going to have the biggest fight when they get back to their quarters, and have the best make up…"

"That's enough Sideswipe!" Optimus snapped, silencing the frontliner.

The crimson mech had the decency to at least look abashed. "I'm just saying, those rumours come from somewhere."

Starscream chuckled as he watched the Prime count backwards from ten. "Sideswipe, my office. Let's go and discuss what you've done today."

The grin falling from his face, Sideswipe nodded. "Yes sir." He replied, falling in line behind his Prime after giving the purple seeker a small wave.

::I'll come visit ya on the inside.:: Sideswipe's comm. crackled to life, Skywarp's amused voice over the line. The frontliner shot his new friend a grateful smile before turning to follow his Prime.

"Let's go Cliffy. Ratchet's expecting us." Ironhide grumbled; a large servo still firmly on the small minibot's shoulder.

The small red mech shot the seekers one last glare before he followed Ironhide without complaint, still nursing the spot where Sideswipe's hard hit had landed.

Sighing with the shake of his helm, Starscream watched as the human femmes hesitantly scurried back to the safety of the ship, carrying Anna and Lucy. Callie shot Thundercracker a grateful smile, which he easily returned, yet Starscream had noted it didn't quite reach his optics like it normally did when his little charge smiled at him.

Then Mia smiled at the trine leader as she followed her cousin, one Starscream did not return, yet was surprisingly grateful to have gotten none the less.

The seekers waited until the humans were safely back inside the _Ark_ before Starscream shifted his wings. "Come, let's go speak in our quarters."

Without another word, they headed for the inside of the base that had become their home; Starscream's wing mates following him without any hesitation, uncertainty and partial anger still floating along the trine bonds from Cliffjumper's words.

()()()

Thundercracker and Skywarp sat on their berth, the narrow slab of steel with the softest pad that either of them had felt since awakening on Earth; the berth they shared directly across from the one Starscream slept on.

Despite not truly being large enough for three grown seekers, the trio were sharing quarters for the time being until Grapple received the approved plans and needed materials to build their own hanger. Being forced to share a room with a bonded pair of seekers was bad enough, never mind being from your own trine; add to that the fact Thundercracker and Skywarp were finally allowed to be affectionate outside of their closed quarters, an another mildly annoying problem had presented itself.

Thundercracker and Skywarp were, in short, horny beyond belief, and for the first time ever, were allowed to touch, pet, talk, _love,_ without the fear of death. Despite growing use to his trine mates' constant public displays of affection, it never got easier walking in on them in the middle of interfacing.

It, once again, left Starscream left feeling alone and left out; forgotten by his trine.

Collapsing onto his own soft berth, Starscream heaved a sigh as he regarded his trine mates; Skywarp looking nervous and Thundercracker looking depressed as they sat together, plating brushing.

"What were you two thinking!?" The commander hissed as he leaned forward, pressing his elbows into his knees as he did so. "I told you, both of you, to stop taking Cliffjumper's foolish bait!" The trine leader snapped, not nearly as angry as his tone would indicate. "I have told you this before!"

His crimson optics flicked from his older trine mate to the younger before going back and pinning the blue seeker. "I am disappointed in you Thundercracker! You are supposed to be the responsible one, I rely on you to be calm during these altercations, not falling victim to a minibot's nasty insults."

Thundercracker sighed, blood red optics averted as his wings and shoulders hunched. Skywarp clicked at his mate, and weakly over the trine bonds Starscream could feel the affection pushing back and forth between the bonded pair. The smaller seeker suddenly wrapped himself around his cobalt mate in an attempt to comfort.

Smothering the building jealousy, Starscream forced it away, swallowing hard. "What's crawled up your afterburners anyhow?"

The demand for an answer was clear, but softened when Starscream pulsed _trine/love/worry_ down the trine bonds, drawing Thundercracker's ruby optics back up, the frown that hadn't gone away since Danny had left the base, still ever present on the seeker's face.

Venting a sigh, Thundercracker's optics dropped again as he stared down at his armoured knees. While Thundercracker struggled with his own emotions, fighting to find the right words to explain how he felt, how useless and hopeless he suddenly felt around Callie, Skywarp huffed an annoyed sigh, bored with waiting. "He's upset that he can't make his human smile."

Confused, Starscream canted his helm while Thundercracker aimed his frown towards his mate. Skywarp offered Thundercracker a distressed frown in return. "Well it's true! Things were going well before Danny left. Callie was happy, Liz was still harassing Red Alert with those stupid little viruses of hers and playing with Hound, and Mia's trying to make nice with Scree, everything was okay then."

Skywarp glanced worriedly between Thundercracker and Starscream, finding the words to explain how his trine mate was feeling; how he believed he had failed his little charge. "And when Danny left, in part to get Callie's and Lucy's horses back, it, I don't know, opened up old wounds. They want their horses back but they know that no one will ever be able to get them back."

Skywarp's one shoulder lifted in a shrug as his servo curled around his mate's. Both sets of wings were pulled in close, downcast and Starscream could feel the first wisps of disappointment and failure filter through the trine bonds.

Starscream's spark pulsed hard in his chest, reaching out along the still shaky lines that bound them together, thrilled when both Skywarp and Thundercracker answered his call with their own soft, if weak responses.

He hated to see his trine mates so upset, Starscream decided, it galled him, angered him. It was his duty as leader to ensure that his trine was happy, healthy and functioning at full capacity. To have a member down due to depression, sadness even, was unthinkable to a trine leader.

The tri coloured seeker heaved a heavy sigh, crimson optics flicking from one to the other, not liking how dull Thundercracker's optics were, how distressed they looked. Wings pulled high, Starscream glowered at his trine mates. "These humans have made you weak Thundercracker."

The cobalt seeker drew even closer inwards, his plates pressed tight to his protoform. Skywarp made a small noise as he pressed ever closer to his mate, both silent as Starscream continued. "We are still Decepticons damn it! We take what we want, not sulk about it like some spoilt sparkling!"

Skywarp cowed at his trine leader's words, optics downcast and sad, but Thundercracker perked up, his optics flaring with hope. "Are you…are you giving me the go ahead to steal back their horses?"

The blue seeker's tone was careful. They were still on probation with the Autobots and still in too shaky a position to do anything stupid like stealing horses.

A smirk crawled across Starscream's mouth, glad that _he_ could bring such a simple thing like hope back to his tine mate, a sure sign that things between them were being to heal, if only a little. "If it will help you calm the Pit down, I'll help you do it."

Delight spread across Thundercracker's face, warmth spreading from his spark and into the trine bonds. The blue seeker forced himself to settle, despite the growing urge to giggle like a sparkling, so happy that Starscream, of all mechs, was going to help him set a wrong to his little charge, right. The trine leader looking out for, and aiding his left and right wing, as they should have been doing since before the war.

Skywarp, feeding off his bonded's excitement, looked at Starscream with the same delight. "Can we go for the horses now? Can you imagine how happy Callie and Lucy will be if we turned up with their horses now!"

Starscream held up his clawed servos. "Calm down Skywarp. We cannot go running off willy nilly…" Skywarp giggled at the commander's silly human term. "…looking for these horses. Where would we put them? What would we do with them?"

The disappointment within Skywarp and Thundercracker was palatable, but they remained silent, allowing Starscream to continue. "I will speak with Prowl and Prime, we'll put the plans for a barn and paddock with the plans for our hanger. I'll think of some reason as to _why_ we need a horse paddock, alright?"

The joy came back through the trine bonds, staggering the commander by how happy something as simple as getting Callie's and Lucy's horses back had made them. Skywarp laughed, high and happy before he nearly lunged at the seeker who sat across from them, wrapping his arms tightly around the other's neck.

"Star! This is awesome! It'll be so great! Maybe we can even get Hound to help us build trails, and a garden! It's going to be so awesome!" Skywarp babbled, overly happy, overjoyed, excited even that they were going to do something nice for someone else. Even Thundercracker's happiness spread like a warm blanket, covering the other two seekers in his unrestrained joy.

Huffing, Starscream peeled Skywarp off his frame, shoving the mostly purple seeker back to his blue hued mate with a forcible "Get off!"

Skywarp laughed as he settled on his mate's lap, his panels sliding smoothly along Thundercracker's upper thighs, his aft plates brushing along the blue seeker's interface panel. A sudden bolt of lust shot through the bonded pair, staggering and hot.

Starscream's wings drooped, the feeling of being alone again, welling from his chest. It was quickly felt by his trine mates, and the commander snapped his side of the bond shut, putting his too easily raised blocks back in place, leaving the empty sense of alone once again within the seeker.

Guilt consumed the trine leader as both worry and their own guilt clouded Skywarp's and Thundercracker's faces.

"Scree." Skywarp whined softly, wanting to touch his trine leader, but afraid he would be rebuffed.

A dark helm shook as Starscream stood up, backing away from his trine mate's servo. Thundercracker cleared his own throat, drawing the commander's attention. "Scree, why don't you…stay?"

His apprehensive crimson optics held Starscream's equally worried optics, and the commander knew what they were offering him.

It was something he had always wanted, thought he wanted with them, but did they really want him, like he did them? Or were they only offering because they felt responsible for him, not because they well and truly desired him?

Starscream knew the answer, knew they loved him as a brother, a dear friend, their beloved trine commander, but never as a lover. Never as something more.

Starscream stood suddenly; almost jumping up, his plates rattling as he did so. "No! No. You two...enjoy." He said awkwardly, backing away, retreating from his own quarters.

"Star, just wait..." Thundercracker tried, shifting Skywarp to the berth, standing and reaching out for his trine mate.

Starscream backed to the door, grasping behind him for the switch. "I can't." He mumbled, hitting it without looking, the near fear making him fumble. "If we really want this plan to...succeed, I should go take the plans to Prowl and Prime."

Thundercracker's optics dimmed at the rejection, his servo still reaching out for his commander. "Star, the report could wait."

They didn't want him, Starscream told himself. "No, you two have fun." He said, forcing his tone to be light as the door opened behind him, with a too loud swoosh. "I have other things to do."

With that, Starscream fled without running, escaping into the halls of the _Ark_ , Thundercracker's voice calling for him to come back, echoing after him.

()()()

Sitting at his desk, the room quite for the first time in days, Optimus Prime set the last data pad down, and giving himself a mental pat on the back, the Prime leaned back, secretly impressed that he had finally caught up on his reports.

Relaxing in his chair, Optimus grinned to himself as he crossed his arms. For the first time in a long time there was nothing to do that required his immediate attention. It was not that they did not have any problems to deal with, far from it; firstly, on the lighter side of things, there was Sunstreaker and Danny; either the frontliner would succeed in his quest, or he would not, but for the time being Danny was not the Prime's problem.

But then there was the issue of what Jazz had uncovered, the discovery that unsettled not only the normally buoyant spy, but the rest of command too; but aside from the debrief that had already taken place, there were things that needed to be discussed, plans to be orchestrated, and neither could happen until Jazz had rested and was in the right frame of processor.

So as short lived as his free time would be, the Prime contemplated what he should do with his rare afternoon off.

Optimus considered reading; he had several data pads with fictions on them he could catch up on. Or perhaps he would go for a drive; the north highways were surprisingly smooth for old roads, an area the younger mechs enjoyed racing through.

' _Yes.'_ Optimus thought to himself. ' _A drive.'_ A few hours away from the craziness of the base, alone, with only the smooth road beneath his tires.

The door to his office suddenly jumped open and several tonnes of annoyed, bristling seeker barged into his office, and all hopes of a quiet afternoon perished violently.

Starscream crossed the small space between the door and the desk in three long strides, tossing the data pad he carried carelessly on to the desk before he moodily threw himself into the guest chair of the Prime's office.

Sitting up a little taller, tenting his digits on his desk, Optimus sighed. "Hello Optimus, how are you? I'm fine thank you Starscream, why don't you have a seat!?"

The Decepticon across from him glowered at the Prime with blood red optics that blazed with the seeker's usual arrogance, as well as a small tingle of hurt that Starscream tried to hide with his anger. The seeker sneered at the Prime as he leaned back, sitting in the chair as though it were his own thrown. "I need that approved."

Picking up the data pad, Optimus scanned through the information the seeker presented him while Starscream huffed, his EM field flicking out against the Prime, filled with hurt and sadness, making Optimus regret his earlier sarcasm.

Starscream's regret filtered through his EM, pressing hard against Optimus, blanketing him, heavy and oppressive. Glancing up from his reading, the Prime regarded his new commander. Starscream sat back, arms crossed, red optics now glowering at the ground across from where he sat.

Helm canting, Optimus grimaced behind his battle mask, his earlier annoyance evaporating in exchange for worry for the seeker. "Starscream, are you alright?"

Startled, unaccustomed to having anyone bother to ask about his well being, the trine leader just stared at his new leader, unsure of what else to say. Wings swept back, Starscream's frame shook as he pulled himself together. "I'm fine." He snapped, "The request?"

Optimus frowned at the seeker before him. "If you're sure."

Starscream snorted, looking away once again. "I'm fine. I just need that request approved."

Studying the seeker for a moment longer, the Prime sighed. "Starscream, why do you wish to build a horse paddock as part of your hanger?"

Red optics blinked back at him for a moment before drawing away again. "Callie and Lucy have been rather unsettled since their cousin left and you sent your crazy frontliner to find her. Thundercracker believes that getting their horses back will cheer them up." A red shoulder plate shrugged. "If it makes my trine mate happy, what do I care?"

Optimus held the scene of the former Decepticon Air Commander for a beat longer before looking back at the proposal Starscream presented him, distracted by the distress that still lingered in the seeker's EM.

"I cannot approve of this as it is. We cannot ask the humans to aid in building something that would be used for only a select few."

Starscream snarled, his outward anger not even strong enough to beat out the hurt that Optimus felt coming from him. "Of course not!" He sneered. "I'm sure if it was one of your _precious_ Autobot's there would be no issue!"

Disappointment flickered through along with the hurt.

"However." Optimus held the seeker's hot glare. "I will approve of the funds to purchase the needed material for a proper paddock. I will also ask Prowl to work the long term care of the horses into our monthly budget, and ask him to find a reason as to why we need two horses on base."

The Prime glanced back down at the data pad. "The actual construction of the paddock and housing for the horses will be up to you Starscream. I would suggest speaking with Grapple and Hoist, I think they will be more than willing to help."

Starscream blinked at the Prime "Oh. Good! Excellent." The seeker cleared his throat. "I doubt I will be doing any such begging. This was what Thundercracker wants so he can be the one to request their help."

Snorting, more to himself, the hurt still present in his EM, Starscream stood, turning to head back to the door, and Optimus took note of how low the seeker's wings sunk. "Starscream, are you really alright?"

Pausing by the opening, red optics dimmed as they regarded the Prime, and again Starscream was surprised by the small warm feeling in his spark caused by the fact Optimus seemed to care about _him_ of all mecha. Megatron had never cared about him; only what he could get out of the seeker, as well as enjoying beating him down.

"I…" Starscream hesitated, before he mentally shook himself. "I'm fine Prime. I'll inform Thundercracker what you've decided to do."

"Alright." Optimus said slowly, fighting to find the right words for the Decepticon. "Starscream if you ever want to talk..."

Optimus trailed off awkwardly, unsure what the right words were, waiting for the seeker's high laughter to come next.

The seeker surprised him by drawing his armor tighter to his frame, wings sinking even lower. "I assure you Prime, I do not need to talk, least of all to you."

Slowly standing, placing the data pad on the desk in a slow, unthreatening move, Optimus tried to reach out to the seeker. "If you're sure, you've been though a lot Starscream."

The uncomfortable feeling spread a little further through the seeker and Starscream fought to keep from fidgeting. "I'm fine." He snapped, before fleeing the room, away from Optimus' confusing words and the growing soft feeling that shouldn't be there.

There was no reason for Optimus to be kind to him, Megatron never was and it confused the seeker as to why the Autobot leader would be so polite to him.

Sighing, Optimus watched Starscream all but run from his office, and not for the first time he wondered how to help the seeker.

()()()

Gentle finger tips ran down the side of his plating and Sunstreaker resisted the urge to snarl that some dirty human was touching his perfect plating, leaving greasy finger prints along his golden hued paint job. But as much as he hated, despised humans, he needed to capture the particular human he was after, so he remained still, quiet. With Danny so close to him, the scent that was individual to her flooded his sensor net, informing the Autobot he had found his prey.

The car thief slowly walked, unsuspecting, along the side of his streamlined frame, her gentle fingers lightly touching his cool plates. Inwardly, Sunstreaker smirked; he had removed the bright red Autobot insignia from his chest, leaving his roof a smooth gold.

She would have no idea it was him until it was too late, then he would drag the little cretin back to base and set things right with his twin.

"Hello gorgeous." Danny crooned as she came to stand by his driver door, a grin spread across her face, small white teeth flashing down at him.

On the cusp of success, the frontliner grinned inwardly. It had hardly taken any work at all, his own frame the bait that had drawn her to him; like a moth to the flame. Humans were as pathetic as the insects in that quote, and Sunstreaker had never found that saying so apt.

"I know someone who looks just like you." Danny's voice sighed from beside him, and Sunstreaker perked up, finding himself curious as to what she thought of him. "But he's an asshole. His twin's a sweat heart though." The human female leaned against his frame, looking through his driver side window, his sensors scanning her features, memorizing her _scent_ , her looks as she did. "A pity he's such a douche. He's got a really cute..."

Whatever Danny thought was cute about him was lost as she trailed off suddenly, her small hand freezing on his door handle, her soft brown eyes wide in shock as she stared through his window, gaping at something.

Sunstreaker stiffened as she stared at him, wondering what could have possibly spooked her. He had gone over his frame meticulously, ensuring that anything that had the Autobot insignia had been scrubbed off and removed prior to hitting Vegas. How could she possibly know it was him?

Her small hand suddenly slipped from his door handle, her small steps backing away and she cast him one last worried look before her head ducked down, walking quickly away from him, trying to blend into the heavy hustle and bustle of Las Vegas.

Confused, Sunstreaker's heavy engine rumbled unhappily. He had been so close, and he hadn't a clue as to what had startled the femme and sent her nearly running.

With a soft snarl, the golden mech pulled into traffic, cutting someone off. The Autobot ignored the angry honking and cursing that followed him, choosing instead to keep pace with the human he hunted.

Catching only glimpses of her, Sunstreaker smirked to himself; she could try and blend into the crowd now, but as long as he had her _scent,_ he could at least track her through the city. It was only a matter of time now before he caught her.

Rolling after her slowly, a dark thrill raced through him every time her small head twisted to glare at him. Danny knew he had found her, had proven Callie wrong that he would never find her. Sunstreaker had only arrived in Vegas a few short Earth hours ago, and he already had her.

It was only a matter of time, it really was. He just needed her to stop this pointless running and they could be on their way.

Engine purring, Sunstreaker's scanners watched as she disappeared down an ally, the no exit sign letting the frontliner know that she was trapped. Despite knowing that the human population now knew of their existence, he had no desire to reveal himself to the population of Vegas.

Edging up to the ally, Sunstreaker was sure he had her trapped, had her pinned. Surprise shot through his spark as Epps' bike flew from the ally, the small rider gunning the throttle, a small blur of black and brown as she spread down the busy street, a dart as she weaved through traffic.

The surprise faded quickly, and the thrill of the hunt coincided with constant battle ready protocols; a true predator after its prey.

His engine gunned, back tires smoking as he gave chase, his V-12 engine screaming, eating up the road to catch the little glitch. A black helmeted head glanced over a leather covered shoulder and a scan told him her heart rate had picked up, sending a dark jolt of joy through the Autobot.

If she was afraid, it would make the victory of catching her all the sweeter.

In a flash her small head, covered in the too big helmet, turned back to look ahead of her before she suddenly cut across the sidewalk, sending pedestrians screaming and diving from her path as she banked the tight corner; the small bike squeezing into the tight spaces between cars, the places where only a motorcycle would dare tread.

Sunstreaker tried to follow her, tried to bank around the corner, his breaks squealing and screaming as he screeched to a halt, startled pedestrians cursing at him. He watched Danny speed down the tightly packed road, watched the tiny bike disappear around another corner, and he knew he had her on the run. Now the game had truly begun.

Dark amusement raced through Sunstreaker's lines. He'd enjoy hunting her down and it would be easier now that he had her _scent_. As Danny's body temperature elevated, sweat glands would be stimulated and from each pore, her, barely detectably by humans, acidic trace would be secreted. With the human femme's scent stored, the Autobot's finely tuned sensors could lead him directly to the flesh bag.

' _Too easy_. _'_ The thought fluttered through the frontliner's processor as he whispered. "Run, run as fast as you can glitch. I'll find you soon enough."

Pulling easily back into the slow, yet smooth flow of traffic, Sunstreaker began his hunt anew.

He didn't see the all black motorcycle with its large rider snap a picture of his golden frame. Pulling a cell phone from the breast pocket of his dark jacket, the rider made a phone call, the Bluetooth device tucked safely under a helmet.

"I've found one." Came the distinctly masculine voice from under the helmet.

The black helmet bobbed up and down in a nod, the same cool, calm voice responding to whatever was being said from the other side. "Rodger that." The rider then fell in line with the traffic, following the golden plated warrior deeper into the heart of Vegas.

**To Be Continued...**

.


	3. Little More Give and Less Take

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Sunstreaker comes to realize that tracking Danny down will not be as easy, Starscream is presented with a very interesting request.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Important Information
> 
> "Blah" Speaking
> 
> ::Blah:: comm. link
> 
> 'Blah'bonded speech
> 
> 'Blah' thinking
> 
> Astrosecond- 2.5 earth Seconds
> 
> Klik- 150 earth seconds/ 2.5 earth Minutes
> 
> Orn- 150 earth minutes/ 2.5 earth Hours
> 
> Joor- 60 earth hours/2.5 earth Days
> 
> Metacycle- 17.5 earth days/2.5 earth Weeks
> 
> Vorn- 10 earth weeks/2.5 earth months
> 
> Stellercycle-30 earth months/2.5 years
> 
> Breem-slang for a moment/minute.
> 
> Night Cycle: star down to star up
> 
> Day Cycle: Star up to star down
> 
> Authors Note: Update time! I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter, but here we go. I do hope you guys enjoy.
> 
> As always, thank you to my beta Darkness_Rising.
> 
> Disclaimer: I own only my OC's, nothing else.

Sunstreaker smirked to himself in both amusement and smugness as his finely tuned sensors followed the small car thief while she 'worked'. Her form of work was of course, boosting cars, but who was he to judge?

The former gladiator had followed Danny as she easily stole a yellow Camaro and Sunstreaker had watched her as she slid up to the car, popping the door with frighteningly practised ease.

The frontliner let the theft pass, he didn't particularly care that Danny had stolen the car for he had better things to worry about, like getting the glitch back home. Knowing that he had a better chance of catching her if he could corner her in a building, Sunstreaker let the thief take her little prize.

Besides, he had argued to himself, he had done far worse in his misspent youth. A simple stolen vehicle was nothing to the crimes he had committed in the past.

Pushing away the thought, Sunstreaker forced himself to focus on the job at servo; following Danny and catching her. He would follow her, at a safe distance, ensuring that Danny and her stolen car were just on the peripheral of his senses, allowing him to follow without being seen. The smugness crept through Sunstreaker's lines. He would follow Danny back to wherever she was working out of, find her little base of operations and snatch her right from it.

Automatically, as it was second nature to him, Sunstreaker reached out to his twin, to share the sense of victory that flooded his spark. The frontliner would soon have Danny, and would soon be bringing her home; showing everyone he wasn't as useless as they all thought him to be.

Sunstreaker would show his twin he could be trusted with such a delicate task, and that he wasn't the monster that half the _Ark_ assumed he was. The insecurities that constantly bombarded the golden hued frontliner suddenly crept up in his processor as he followed Danny; _he wasn't the monster they all thought him to be!_

Dismay and distress flared within Sunstreaker, sharp and hot when he reached out for his other half and was met by the ice cold blocks. Sideswipe, his own twin, the other half of his spark was still ignoring him, still blocking him out just as everyone else did.

To make it all the worse, Sideswipe was doing it because he was mad at him, hurt by Sunstreaker's own actions. Actions, that Sunstreaker only took to ensure the little glitchling that he was currently following understood _who_ Sideswipe truly belonged to.

The crimson plated twin could play with the stupid human all he wanted, but at the end of the day Sideswipe was still _Sunstreaker's_ twin, _Sunstreaker's_ other half, not some playmate to Danny. Yet, Sunstreaker thought with hurt weighing heavily in his spark, Sideswipe had chosen Danny over him.

Pain, the kind that Sunstreaker wasn't used to dealing with, wasn't able to cope with on his own, spread through his spark, causing his engine to hitch. His alt form slowed momentarily, losing Danny before he sped back up to find her in his sensors again.

Sideswipe was all Sunstreaker had as a friend. Prowl and Jazz were more like parental figures to the twins, Prowl more so than the Autobot TIC, although both where always there when the twins really needed them, like any good parent would be. Yet, Prowl wasn't the kind who would want to do something he would call 'fun' or 'exciting'.

Prowl and Jazz were the creators they never had, not the friends Sunstreaker had trouble making. Most in the _Ark_ thought of the golden frontliner as a manic, crazy with a blood lust that was far worse than any Decepticon. It was only half true, but Sunstreaker was forced to live with the mask that others forced him to wear.

No one wanted to hang out with Sunstreaker, half thought they would end up dead before the day was through. It was okay though, because Sunstreaker always had his art to concentrate on, and his twin to rankle him when he needed it.

They had just as much fun together as they fought with each other. Or at least the twins had, until Danny came along and Sideswipe started to ignore him in favour of the human femme. It hurt that his twin had chosen the human over him; had forgotten him and left him alone just like everyone else did.

It burned at his spark that Sideswipe had dropped him so easily, ate at him, and the fact that Danny was human made it all the worse.

With a feral snarl, the former gladiator forced all thoughts away that had to do with his twin, shutting his emotions away with them. They would only get in his way as he tried to capture and take Danny home.

Following the thief to the smaller roads along the outskirts of the city, he watched as she pulled into a small parking lot with a single dingy building. It was a squat, grey building with two large bay doors. Oddly, the thick doors appeared fresh and new, the steel shining in the morning light, sticking out like a sore thumb on the grungy building. Beyond the ugly building, stacks of flat cars were piled high, scrap metal reaching for the sky, as though in some eerie race to see which pile could become the tallest first.

Pulling over to the side of the road, far enough that Danny wouldn't notice him unless she was looking for him, Sunstreaker observed her as she got out of the stolen car with ease. She moved as though nothing was amiss, as though she belonged there and that the car belonged to her.

A junk yard, he suddenly realized. Danny was at a junk yard, and was more than likely working for a chop shop.

Watching as the thief walked, strutted, to the building, Sunstreaker carefully rolled forward, the smugness returning. He could see Epps' black motorcycle parked up, hidden in the shadow of the ugly building.

He had the little glitch trapped now, and she had no way to escape this time. Watching as Danny knocked on the large bay door, pounding on the new steel with her tiny fist before she was let inside by an unknown male human.

As Danny disappeared into the building, Sunstreaker transformed, his lean, strong frame standing tall over the squat building. His polished finish sparkling in the sun in ways the door never would be able to. His perpetual frown set firmly on his face, Sunstreaker forced his shoulders to loosen, allowed his mind to slip closer to a combat ready state, just in case Danny tried to run again. It wouldn't take much to catch the femme now that he had her cornered, had her trapped.

He stalked to the building, frown growing into a scowl as he closed in on the bay doors, knowing this was a complete waste of time. He had better things to do than drag the brat home. Nearing the building, Sunstreaker could hear voices, laughing human voices coming through the thin walls of the building.

Snarling to himself, Sunstreaker took a knee by the bay door before he dug thick blunt digits into the softer steel. Balling his servo into a fist, the metal curled around his digits as it gave way, screeching and screaming as it did.

A human, maybe two, screamed within the building as he tore the large bay door right off its hinges, the tracks of the door ripping off with it. The Autobot tossed the wide, thick steel over a single shoulder with the flick of a wrist, the thin steal tracks flailing behind the sheet metal like flags.

With a disgruntled snarl, Sunstreaker crouched lower to peer inside the chop shop, five humans plastered themselves against the far wall, their small eyes wide in shock as they stared up at him, skin pale in shock.

One of them whimpered, a female, while the scent of urine suddenly filled the air, causing Sunstreaker to snarl in disgust. One of the males, one of the larger ones with sandy hair, had just urinated himself, the hot liquid seeping down his leg, soaking through his jeans.

The Autobot snarled again, icy optics sliding away from the small group of humans that huddled as far from him as they possibly could, their terror stinking as strongly as the piss that wafted around them, stopping on the single human that didn't cower from him.

Danny leaned against the wooden work table, a hip cocked against it, arms crossed as she glared up at the frontliner. Her lips were pulled down into a hard frown while her brown eyes, dark and angry, were on the golden frontliner.

Sunstreaker's cold gaze held hers, not backing down, his own snarl silent on his lips.

Heaving a sigh, Danny turned from him, plucking a bottle of gold tequila from the table and she poured herself a shot. "Really Sunstreaker? Is knocking too human for you? Had to come barging in during my celebratory drink, and ruin it?" The human rolled her eyes at him whilst giving a deep, annoyed sigh before she licked her wrist.

Snorting as the human femme began to sprinkle salt on her bared wrist, Sunstreaker huffed. "I hardly have time to understand your celebrations Danny." His helm canting as he watched her pick up a bright green lime, the frontliner snorted. "I've just come to collect you. So have your little drink and let's go."

Danny huffed a dry laugh, an amused smirk spreading across her face. "I'm not going home with you Sunstreaker, I have work to do."

She then licked her wrist and shot the alcohol back in one hard gulp. In a swift movement she quickly sunk her teeth into the lime in her hand, sucking the juice from it. The whole act made Sunstreaker's plating crawl as he watched her drop the lime's husk onto the table with the others.

"I don't care what you have to do Danny, we're going home." The former gladiator snapped, not bothering to hide the disgust that was so evident in his tone.

Moving another bottle, one that read _kerosene_ further away from her bottle of tequila, Danny poured another shot, the air of confidence never once leaving the human. "No, I'm not."

Danny's tone was calm and it instantly set the frontliner on edge; the femme was never calm like this, unless she was up to something.

"D-Danny. You know this thing?" one of the shaky voices from the humans plastered against the wall called out.

Sunstreaker snarled at being called a thing, his upper lip pulled into an angry snarl. Danny beat Sunstreaker to the verbal spar before he had the chance to say anything. " _Him._ I know _him_ Brandon. He's not a thing!"

The gold warrior gave Danny a wary look as she herself looked surprised that she had defended the frontliner so vigorously. Danny gave herself a small, mental shake, turning her attention back to the shot as she sprinkled more salt onto her wrist. "Well I like his brother."

Danny's small head tipped up to Sunstreaker and a look of amusement spread across her face. "Why is it that Sides is one of the coolest dudes I've ever met, and you're an asshole?"

Giving the femme a flat look, Sunstreaker kept his tone equally as flat and unemotional as he hid the hurt under a layer of ice and anger. "What can I say? He got all the personality."

The brown eyed women gave a huff of a dry laugh again before she proceeded to repeat the tequila ritual. Slamming her empty shot glass onto the wooden table, harder than necessary, Danny turned her body so that her back was to the frontliner.

Sunstreaker could see her hands moving, doing something while the other pairs of human eyes remained pinned on him, and he had no idea as to what she could be up to. "Listen Sunny, just leave me be. I'm going to come home once I've done all my contracts and I'll be fine, despite what Callie thinks. Go home and spend time with Sides, he misses you, and tell the others you couldn't find me."

Brown eyes peered over her leather covered shoulder, watching his face. "You won't get hurt that way."

His grip on the roof suddenly increased, causing the beams to squeal as they strained, his anger growing, bubbling. "First of all glitch, don't call me Sunny. Second, I was ordered to bring you home and I never fail the Prime." There was a burst of pride at that truth. "And lastly, what could you possibly do to me?"

Danny's cold eyes held his icy optics for a beat longer before she sighed, turning her attention back to the bottle of tequila. When she spoke, she did not address Sunstreaker. "Brandon, can you grab the fire extinguisher?"

The dark haired male, with the light grey eyes and shaky voice, who couldn't take his eyes from the golden Autobot, responded to Danny's odd request. "The…the fire extinguisher?

Danny nodded as she pulled her hair into a high pony tail. "Yeah, that one." Her small head nodded to the tall red fire extinguisher at the corner of the building.

Moving on wobbly legs, Brandon stayed plastered against the wall as he shuffled to the corner of the building, never taking his eyes from Sunstreaker. The frontliner glowered at the back of Danny's small head, wondering what she was up to.

Brandon picked up the large red fire extinguisher before slipping to Danny's side, eyes still glued to the giant being. "What do you want with the extinguisher?"

"I want you to put out the fire." She simply replied, her small hands continuing to work at what Sunstreaker could not see.

Canting his helm in confusion at her odd words, the Autobot felt his battle protocols rise to a battle ready state, purely out of habit. He forced it down, forced himself away from the killing edge with a deep vent. After all, Danny was just a human, what could she _possibly_ do to him armed with only a half bottle of tequila?

The male that Danny called 'Brandon' blinked at her, dumbfounded and stupid, in Sunstreaker's humble opinion. "W…what fire?"

Sunstreaker watched as Danny's small head tipped up to stare back at the dark haired male. "Where's the money for the Camaro?"

Brandon blinked at her again. "Over there on the table." His pale face tipping to the black satchel that sat on the end of the wooden table. The car thief followed the boy's directional nod, her brown eyes falling on her payment for the stolen goods.

"Perfect." Came her brisk response. "I should be back in a few days with the Corvette."

Brandon glanced back at her, before going back to an equally confused Sunstreaker. "S…sure thing Danny. Few days." The male paused, grey eyes dropping to the side. "So, what fire do you need me to put out?"

Heaving a sigh, Danny's shoulders twitched beneath her leather jacket moments before a soft click echoed in an alarming way, driving Sunstreaker a step closer to the killing edge. The human femme suddenly spun around to face him, and Sunstreaker wasn't prepared for what he saw.

The thief's face was cold and impassive as she held the Molotov cocktail that she had made from the tequila bottle and kerosene, orange fire crawling up the grey shop rag she had stuffed in the top. Sunstreaker felt himself go cold with shock, thinking there was no way the little glitch would throw that. There was just no way she would have the ball bearings to do it.

Would she?

Optics icing over, Sunstreaker glared at the human. "Danny, don't you fu-"

The dirty human curse was cut off, died in his throat, as the thief threw the bottle of burning liquid at him, aiming low, away from his face. The bottle sailed through the air, the fire trailing behind the bottle like a comet's tail, aimed for his shoulder.

Sunstreaker's optics followed the bottle, raising his arm to cover his face, protecting what was most vulnerable. The bottle smashed on his forearm, throwing kerosene and fire across his golden plating, causing his paint to bubble and pain to sear across his arm.

Jerking back, a pain filled cry ripped from Sunstreaker's throat as the fire spread up to his elbow and down to his wrist; his once perfect paint job blackened and bubbled as the fire spread. He didn't dare to try and bat the fire out, fear that he'd only spread it onto his servos kept Sunstreaker frozen.

So concentrated on the spreading fire, keeping his panic from rising, Sunstreaker barely heard Danny's voice shout out. "That fire Brandon! Put it out as soon as I'm clear!"

From the corner of his optics he saw Danny run for the satchel, tossing it over her shoulder as she bolted for the exit. Slipping between Sunstreaker's large legs and the torn bay door, Danny darted for Epps' stolen bike.

He hardly heard the bike start, nor did he see her leave as he concentrated on the spreading fire on his arm. Cold foam spread across his arm just as suddenly as the fire caught, coating his destroyed finish from elbow to wrist.

The whole situation happened in a matter of seconds; one moment Danny was there the next she was gone. The foam from the extinguisher spattered across his cheek and nose as he turned just in time to watch Danny pull Epps' bike back onto the road, a black and brown blur as she fled from him.

Rage suddenly replaced the shock; black, blinding rage with the growing need to smear the human that had the audacity to _throw fire at him_ growing with it. Shucking off the heavy, sticky foam from his arm, an animalistic snarl bubbled from his chest, Sunstreaker pinned the human with the fire extinguisher with a cold glare.

The human called Brandon swallowed hard, his breathing hitching as Sunstreaker could literally pin point the very moment panic took over. Foam continued to drip from the fire extinguisher as his grey eyes widened and his mouth fell open again.

Glancing down at his ruined arm, the pain dulling to an ache and what was left of the paint flaking off in a black crust, Sunstreaker snarled again, his anger clear in the noise that rumbled from his throat. "Where is she heading?"

The humans all pressed themselves harder against the wall they plastered themselves against, Brandon's shaky hold on the fire extinguisher causing him to nearly drop it.

"Where!" Sunstreaker roared. The want, the sheer need to kill something overtaking all thought.

"Freemont Street. Danny's heading for Freemont Street. She's working for a group of Interns looking for another Corvette." The only female in the group suddenly shouted, jumping away from the wall in her haste to sell Danny out.

The boys in the garage all gave her a look, shocked at what she had done. Her bare shoulders shrugged, a frown pulling hard on her pink lips. "What? I'm not getting shot by a robot for that bitch." Her head tipped towards him, brown hair falling into her face. "Let Danny deal with her own problems."

Engine rumbling low and angry, EM lashing out aggressively, beyond angry at what Danny had done, beyond hurt that his own twin would choose to hang out with a human like her, Sunstreaker gave the humans one last warning. "If any of you talk about this, _any of this!_ I'll burn your garage to the ground."

Not what a good, noble Autobot would say or do, but Sunstreaker was too angry to comprehend his threat. "Do you understand me?"

The small heads bobbed in a nod, knowing that the Autobot wasn't lying, knew that he truly would burn their building to the ground, just to prove he could.

With nothing but another snarl, Sunstreaker stood and turned away from the doorless bay, storming back to the road he had come from, foam and smoke still trailing from his arm. Too angry and focused on finding and destroying Danny in any way he could, Sunstreaker didn't bother to clean his arm off any more than he already had as he dropped back into his alt form.

Squealing black tires, and thick plumes of smoke pooling from under his alt forms undercarriage, Sunstreaker took off, leaving the dirty parking lot behind. With his sole focus on finding Danny so he could go home, he didn't notice the black motorbike parked down the street, its rider nowhere to be seen.

()()()

Down turned white wings twitched along white hips as Silverbolt marched down the orange halls of the _Ark_ , trying to exude the air of confidence that a good commander should have. Yet on the inside, Silverbolt's tanks knotted and his spark burned with nerves in his chest.

Behind him Fireflight hummed an off key tune, nearly skipping as he walked beside Skydive. From behind Fireflight and Skydive, Slingshot and Air Raid brought up the rear, bickering as they always did.

Huffing loudly, Slingshot crossed his arms tightly over his wide chest, the bond open and humming with the same nervousness that Silverbolt felt. "This is stupid!" Slingshot huffed angrily, his square helm shooting up to look at the ceiling bullishly. "We don't need any help, we're fine."

Silverbolt glanced over his shoulder, his ever patient frown tipped to his younger gestalt mate. "We do need help." The Aerialbots commander said placidly, knowing with all his spark that this is what they had to do, if they ever wanted to improve.

Glancing down at his fidgeting digits, Fireflight's soft voice spoke up from behind. "Even Skyfire thinks this is a bad idea. Asking...them."

Shoulders squaring, gathering his courage in the same way he would when he was forced to fly at great heights, Silverbolt cleared his throat. "I know Flight. But Skyfire is a bit, ah, bias to the situation."

That was the most delicate way Silverbolt could put the awkward dance between Starscream and Skyfire as they both did their very best to ignore each other, and pretend the other simply didn't exist.

Fireflight's wings drooped a little further on his back, not liking to think ill of one of the few fliers stranded on Earth, especially Skyfire who had always made the overly young Aerialbots feel welcome when few others had. Yet, Silverbolt had argued with his team, their need was greater than any personal issue Skyfire may have.

Coming to Optimus Prime's office, his team at his back, Silverbolt took a deep intake of air and knocked on his leader's door. The few moments it took for Optimus to open the door and beckon, felt abnormally long to Silverbolt while forcing himself to not fidget as he waited.

Crossing to his commander's desk, Silverbolt stood before the Prime, back straight and shoulders squared as his team clustered behind him. Optimus' kind blue optics looked up at the young commander, his digits interlacing on his desk. "What can I do for you Silverbolt?"

The kindly spoken words put the flier at ease, reminding him that this was Optimus Prime, one of the best, if not the best leader the Autobots had ever had. The Prime would not mock or scoff at Silverbolt's fearful request.

Clearing his throat, and after a false start, Silverbolt outlined what he wanted, and his hope that the Prime would help him achieve their goal.

"We, we need help Optimus." The Aerial commander started, a bit hesitantly. "Too often my team has gotten out of bad situation with nothing but luck and it's only a matter of time that one of us gets killed."

Blue optics flickered in distress as the thought of one of the Aerialbots dying, raced through Optimus' processor. Just as quickly the Prime hid his distress, the fact that it could so easily become a reality was gone in an instant. "I think you don't give your team enough credit Silverbolt," from behind him the other four members of his gestalt perked up with pride. "You all have more skill and know how than even you realise."

Slingshot leaned a little closer to his commander, the smugness in his tone oozing in every word. "Told ya!"

Silverbolt brushed his team mate off, ignoring him. "We're inexperienced Optimus." Came the Aerialbot's firm reply. "And we need help, training that only other fliers can give us."

Fireflight shifted uncomfortably, as did Skydive, while Silverbolt continued. "I…I want Starscream to take over the role of Aerial commander here on Earth, and to have him train us."

Optimus blinked at the quickly spoken words that suddenly burst from the young Aerial. Helm canting, Optimus considered Silverbolt's request, could understand why he had come to him with this request, and Optimus allowed Silverbolt to continue.

Keeping his blue optics firm on his leader's face, Silverbolt managed to keep his voice from shaking, but only just. "Starscream has a vast amount of experience, something that none of us have. He's survived eons of air combat, has led seekers into battle and is a master strategist."

Glancing down, Optimus considered Silverbolt's words. The Prime knew that training with Starscream, and likely his trine, would be tough as Optimus was sure that the Decepticon wouldn't take the same kind of slack that the others would. Yet, having Starscream take of the Aerialbots training would in fact help Starscream integrate amongst the Autobots a little more, as well as giving him something else to do other than sit through boring Commanders meetings.

It would also give the younglings the training they so desperately needed whilst at the same time putting more than only two mechs willingly under Starscream's command.

Clearing his throat, Optimus looked up at Silverbolt, holding his gaze firmly. "You realise Silverbolt, that if Starscream does agree to this, his training and expectations will be much higher and harsher than any Autobot?"

Slingshot scowled from behind his gestalt leader, but said nothing. "Yes sir, we do."

Optimus considered the request again, wondering how long it had taken the Aerialbots to gather the courage to ask, before giving his answer. "Very well Silverbolt. I shall ask Starscream if he would be willing to take over as Aerial commander and train you. If he agrees to this, I suggest that you learn what you can from him Silverbolt, despite his prickly nature, Starscream is a fountain of information."

"You will continue to be the Aerialbot commander, but you will have to take orders from Starscream as a unit within his fliers." Despite there really being only two flier groups. "However Silverbolt, if anything Starscream does seems too harsh, cruel even, I expect you to come straight to me. Understand?"

Relief spread through the young commander and the tenseness that Silverbolt had been holding seemed to flow from his frame, his shoulders loosening as he relaxed. "Yes sir. Of course."

"If Thundercracker and Skywarp take part in your training, I expect all five of you to listen to what they have to say. Is that understood?"

Five helms nodded, some with far more exuberance than others and Optimus nodded in return. "Very well Silverbolt, I shall speak to Starscream and see if he would be willing to take on this responsibility."

With a shy smile spreading over white face plates, Silverbolt gave the Prime a lopsided grin. "Thank you Optimus."

With a final nod, the Concorde turned and ushered his gestalt from the Prime's office. The door had not even shut when Fireflight suddenly laughed, high and happy, his voice loud and excited. "We're going to be trained by seekers!"

The door slid shut before Optimus could hear anyone else's response, causing the Prime to sigh and shake his helm. The Aerialbots requesting Starscream's help was a bonus for him, all he had to do was figure out a way to convince the prickly Decepticon that working with a lot of untrained younglings was a good idea.

()()()

Under the peaceful starry sky, a warm desert wind teasing at tense white wings while Starscream growled low in his throat, his crimson optics narrowed on a cluster of rocks digging in the sand. Around the untouched boulders, blackened earth and craters littered the ground while the boulders stood tall, mocking him in their untouched beauty.

Liz's high, happy laugh echoed through the night, the bright neon glow from her laptop shining brightly in the distance, giving Starscream her exact location; it would be stupidly easy for him to kill her. To point his blaster in her direction, take aim and burn her away to nothing.

Shaking the dark thought form his helm, Starscream knew he wouldn't do it, couldn't bear to do it. It would crush Mia, betray Optimus and kill Hound. But most of all it would jeopardize the safety of his trine and everything they were trying to do here.

Tamping down on his rage, Starscream knew that he was only projecting his own anger, annoyance, at the small fleshling and her happy Autobot friend. Hound was no doubt with her, laughing at whatever had made the little fleshing laugh. Their happiness set Starscream's denta on edge, made him grit them until metal shavings flaked in his mouth. It wasn't fair that they could be so happy, and he so miserable.

Venting deeply, calming himself as much as he could, Starscream forced his emotions away, concentrating as he raised his arm, his null ray replaced with a blaster, and took aim at the rocks he had painstakingly gathered.

Taking aim, Starscream shot at the boulders, his rage bubbling up at the last minute, redding out his vision. The laser blast went wide, the earth beside the boulders exploding in a mass of dust and rock, the boulders that he aimed for standing untouched again, mocking him in their wholeness.

Liz's laughter in the distance felt like salt on the wounds as Starscream stared dumbfounded at the untouched boulders. How could he have missed such a large target at such a close range? The numbed shock wore off nearly instantly, the bubbling rage replacing it.

He bit back the snarl and contained the ragged scream that begged to be released with a hard swallow. In his spark he understood why he couldn't concentrate, why his focus was elsewhere, and it just made him all the angrier.

The meeting between Thundercracker, Hoist and Grapple had gone well, very well in fact. The two Autobots had been more than happy to help the seeker, and before Starscream could utter the words _Vosairian flier_ , the plan had snowballed to include Hound, Trailbreaker, Prowl, Jazz, Sideswipe, Ratchet, Ironhide, Liz, Mia, Epps, Lennox and Aleyah.

It had been Prowl who had, just as the Prime had said he would, come up with the appropriate budget they needed, as well as the excuse to Mearing; the black and white Autobot had insisted that mucking out stalls would be the perfect punishment detail for wayward soldiers and rowdy Autobots.

Hoist and Grapple had put together a plan for the barn and paddocks and how they would hook up a water system that would fill the reservoirs automatically. The barn and paddocks would be finished prior to the seekers hanger, but even Starscream didn't make a fuss about it since Thundercracker had worked so hard to pull the plan together.

Hound had been included to help make riding trails and pick out the right kinds of plants and grass the horses would need to survive living in the dessert, Trailbreaker helping his little green friend. Researching plants, Starscream suspected, was what Liz was helping Hound with in the warm dessert night.

Thundercracker had wanted so badly for the whole plan to be a surprise to Callie and Lucy, that he had somehow convinced Ironhide to keep Lucy entertained during the barns constructed. It was no small miracle that Ratchet had been convinced to teach Callie about Cybertronion anatomy, telling her that if she was going to be living with them for the time being, she might as well learn to be useful to them. It would keep Callie busy and not missing Thundercracker while he helped the others construct the barn.

Sideswipe, after serving his time in the brig, had agreed to help, in part because he was bored with his twin away chasing his little human around Vegas, and in part to help Skywarp, his pranking ally. As well as the humans they were doing it for, Callie and Lucy, they were hoping to bring back a measure of happiness, a small amount of normality.

The whole thing had gone ridiculously well and yet again everything had fallen in place for Thundercracker, like it always seemed to. The blue seeker always seemed to have the world bend to his will, when he focused on something, when he wanted something bad enough he would see that he got it.

Thundercracker had wanted to bond with Skywarp and they had done it, even though their lives would be on the line for just showing emotions. He had wanted to join the Autobots, and here they were. Thundercracker wanted Callie to have her dumb animals back, and a plan had already been plotted out to achieve that goal.

Thundercracker always got what he wanted and by proxy, so did Skywarp. Yet Starscream, who had only wanted to belong to his trine, felt he would never even get that.

A bolt of lust that didn't belong to Starscream shot through the seeker, the root cause of the seeker's anger, of his hurt. A victory frag, is what Sideswipe had called it, had told Skywarp to have some fun with his mate, alone time for the pair of them.

Starscream snarled, aiming for the rocks again, using the heat of his blaster to distract him from his anger, wishing it didn't hurt so much when his trine mates left him to pursue their own feelings. Laser fire, bright light that burst from the end of his weapon, erupted as his rage drove him to act. It helped him focus on his blocks, enforce them, keeping Thundercracker and Skywarp out while they touched and played, openly loved each other like only a bonded pair could.

Drained and tired, Starscream panted as he glared at the rocks, still untouched by his angry frenzy of violence, all the earth around it blackened and pock marked from his attack.

A broken screech, high and angry, ripped from Starscream chest as his blinding rage shook him to the core. Nothing ever went right for him, _nothing!_ Not even a simple round of target practice had gone as it should. Frame trembling from the sudden rush of anger and hatred towards the stupid rocks, Starscream screeched again, raising his arm with the intention to fire again. He would see the rocks reduced to pebbles before the night was up.

So entranced in his anger, so focused on his motionless target, Starscream didn't hear the heavy footsteps of a large frame behind him, didn't sense the calm EM field flaring softly against his own ragged one. Blinding rage was a dangerous place to be, it would cause warriors to lose sight of their surroundings.

The heavy, yet gentle servo to his wide glossy red shoulder startled Starscream, reminding him of one of the first lessons he had learnt when he joined the Decepticons; _never let your guard down._

Fear shot through Starscream, the fear of Megatron, the fear that a mech larger than him was touching him. Acting purely on instinct, the seeker snarled as he whirled around to face his attacker, denta bared in a hiss, blaster raised to shoot at close range.

Confused blue optics blinked down at the seeker, cobalt servos rising in surrender as he focused on the barrel of the seeker's weapon. "My apologies Starscream, I did not mean to startle you."

Wings drooped with his shoulders as he relaxed when blue and not crimson optics stared back down at him. He tore the weapon from Optimus Prime's face, his wildly pulsing spark calming as he reeled his EM back in as he directed his anger at the Prime.

"What are you doing here!" he snarled, not bothering to take in the fact that this was Optimus Prime's base, his house.

Servos lowering to his sides, palms up to show Starscream they were empty and non-threatening. "I just wanted to speak with you Starscream." He paused as he took in the seeker's appearance, his panting anger as he glared. Helm canting, voice full of concern, the Autobot was helpless to ask. "Starscream are you alright?"

A wary look crossed the seeker's face, the anger that was ever present momentarily forgotten in favour of confusion. "I'm fine." The Decepticon said slowly, eyeing up the Prime suspiciously, his frame fidgeting as he looked ready to run.

Glancing at the untouched rocks, Optimus' blue optics slid back to the crimson ones that shone out from under a dark helm. Slowly, uncertain if aid was either wanted or would be appreciated, Optimus' deep voice rumbled. "Starscream, are you in need of assistance?"

Snarling, indignation flaring through Starscream's EM, his wings sweeping high as his armour clamped tight to his frame, crimson optics narrowed. "I don't need your help Prime!"

Again, blue optics drifted to the outcrop of rocks, untouched and whole. Slipping back to hold the Decepticon's optics, Optimus calmly said. "Your target would suggest otherwise."

Shocked, Starscream stared up at the Prime, unsure of what he could say to that, not used to the Prime's sarcasm. Annoyed, the seeker snarled and shoved the Prime further away from him as his optics became angry slits, his EM flaring in his annoyance. "I don't need you Prime! I have managed to survive this long without being coddled by you! I don't need your blasted help!"

Servos rose again in surrender as Optimus allowed Starscream his rant, letting him blow off his anger. "I apologise Starscream, I was only trying to tease you. I didn't mean to offend."

An angry growl was his only response from the seeker, blood red optics shining with suppressed hurt. "What makes you think you've offended me?" Came the angry hiss.

Resisting the urge to sigh, Optimus forced himself to relax, forced his EM to project calmness over the irate seeker. "Starscream, may I help you?"

Huffing an annoyed sigh, the seeker crossed his arms over the cockpit of his chest, protecting the yellow glass that guarded his spark. "How could you possibly help me Prime?"

Taking a slow step forward Optimus kept his EM calm and soothing, pressing against, but not invading, Starscream's field. "Turn around Starscream, and focus on your target."

The seeker's face contorted into an almost there snarl, the tip of an exposed canine denta peeking out from a plump lower lip. After a moment of hesitation, with one last dirty look thrown at the Prime, Starscream did as he was asked and turned to glower at the outcrop of rocks.

"Now what?" the seeker snarled; the opposite to Optimus's gentle sarcasm.

Optimus took another step forward, his chest nearly pressing against Starscream's back and the seeker could feel the heat from the other's frame, from the large engine that lay between the Prime's chest and spark. White wings suddenly shuddered on the seeker's back at the close proximity of the Prime, relishing in the Prime's calm field.

The seeker fought the urge to lean into the Prime's warm frame, tried not to imagine what those large servos would feel like gently caressing his trembling wings, soothing them while the Prime explored their wide expansions.

Crimson optics flared in shock and surprise, and Starscream wondered where in the Pit had that thought had come from. The seeker shook his helm and quickly dismissed the thought, blamed it on lack of intimate attachment for so long combined with the sudden need of his trine mates to 'face each other over every flat surface.

Starscream could feel Optimus hesitate behind him, the large frame going still as he paused in thought. "Is this alright Starscream?"

The seeker could hear concern in the other's voice as the Prime hesitated, obviously wondering if the close proximity really was welcome. "It's fine." Starscream choked out, clearing his throat, forcing his usual sarcastic sneer. "What now Yoda?"

Optimus paused behind the seeker once again, amusement filling the air between them. "I'm surprised you know that reference."

Shrugging at the Prime's soft words, Starscream growled. "Skywarp watches Star Wars. I've managed to pick up a few things." The seeker spat, not nearly as annoyed as he sounded.

A smile crossed the Prime's hidden mouth while he pressed a large servo to the back of the seeker's back. "Take a deep vent Starscream and offline your optics."

Snarling, the seeker shot a sour look over his shoulder to the Prime before he turned back to stare at the rocks. Off lining his optics, the seeker took a deep vent before he huffed its release.

From behind the seeker, Optimus' voice rumbled. "Take another vent Starscream, and let it go slowly."

Internally rolling his optics, Starscream did as he was asked and taking a vent, he slowly released it through his nose.

"Let your frame relax. Feel it in your toe plates and your digits. Relax up from your servos and pedes to your wrists and ankles. Feel it move down your wings to your back and through your chest."

Starscream did as the Prime asked, he slowly relaxed and released the hard ball of unease and tension he had unknowingly carried with him. He felt his frame go lax under the Autobot's gentle words and soothing EM field, with the warm servo pressed into his back.

Gently, Optimus' other servo moved to grasp Starscream's wrist, the commanders large servo dwarfing the seekers. The Autobot eased the seeker's arm up, raising the blaster that was currently hooked into his arm. "Keep venting Starscream, slow and deep."

The words were soft and soothing to the Decepticon's audios; a distorted voice that lulled him further into relaxation, a source of comfort to the seeker during his overly emotional moment.

"Now online your optics and focus on your target." Optimus said gently, his servos still in place, one at a wrist and one at Starscream's back.

Crimson optics blinked online, instantly focusing as optics narrowing on the rocks that served as his target. The Autobot's servo finally drew away from his wrist, and a small part of Starscream mourned the loss of contact as Optimus's calm voice said "Fire."

Starscream didn't hesitate, his sole focus on the rocks as he took aim and fired. The boulders exploded in a shower of dirt and pebbles, spraying in all directions as they were destroyed. A dark mouth dropped open as a fierce joy shot through Starscream at the successful destruction of the target.

Starscream wanted to laugh at the ridiculousness of it all; he was a seasoned warrior and should have been able to hit those rocks with no help at all. Yet, as it always seemed to, his emotion got in his way, made something that should have been easy far more difficult than it needed to be. It had been Optimus' calming presence and steady EM that had helped him achieve his simple goal.

Containing his laughter, Starscream forced himself to straighten with a satisfied smirk. Optimus stood back, the pride that flushed through the other's EM was embarrassing to the seeker for the simple deed done.

"Well done Starscream. Well done." Optimus gently praised as he removed his servo from the seeker's lower back as he gently patted the bright red shoulder plate.

Huffing, forcing himself to sound more annoyed, Starscream turned from the mild destruction to glower at the Prime. "What do you want?" The seeker snapped, disregarding what the Autobot had just done for him.

Taken aback, Optimus forced himself not to react to the sudden change in the Decepticon's demeanour, the seeker's sudden blocking and posturing. He simply rolled with it, years with the twins preparing for most attitudes and bad ideas.

Shoulders shifting back, holding the seeker's crimson optics, despite the seemingly bubbling anger that always seemed to be surrounding Starscream, Optimus explained why he had come looking for him. "I had an interesting conversation with Silverbolt."

Confusion crossed the seeker's dark face, dark brows drawing down in confusion. "The leader of your baby jets?"

Optimus nodded, continuing. "He feels they are lacking proper training. That, given time, their luck will run out and that a member of his gestalt will die."

Starscream blinked at his new leader, his gaze open, his optics a mixture of confusion and comprehension. Crossing his arms back over his cockpit, Starscream leaned back a little as he regarded the Prime. "Well." The seeker started. "He'd be right. There may be hope for that youngling yet if he understands how pathetic they are."

"That's not quite what I said." Optimus started, but was quickly cut off with a huff of an over exaggerated sigh and an optic roll.

"You didn't have to, but it's the truth." Starscream snapped. "Those baby jets of yours are undertrained, can barley fly at times,"

"That's not true at all!" Optimus interrupted, causing Starscream to laugh.

"Prime!" He scoffed. "I once saw Fireflight fly into a wall chasing a butterfly in the middle of a battle field."

"He's just...young."

"He and the others are undisciplined. They do not understand their true nature and what they can truly accomplish, and they never will, not without help. The only thing those little jets have going for them, the only thing that has kept them alive, is their ability to combine. Without that, they would have died long ago."

Optimus shifted, unnerved by what the seeker had just said, knowing in his spark that the Aerialbots lives hung in the balance of the outcome of this conversation. Behind his battle mask, the Prime licked his lips, picking out the proper words he needed to convince the seeker. "They are untrained. A lot of that has to do with my failings to find them a proper teacher."

The truth stung, but Optimus was not one to shuck off duty and responsibility. The Aerials had come to him for help, and the semi-truck would do all he could for his Autobots. "Yet I am trying to rectify the mistakes I have made that have affected their lives."

Confusion crossed over the seeker's face, but Starscream stayed blessedly silent and allowed Optimus to continue. "The Aerialbots need a proper air commander to guide them through battle and train them for it. What Silverbolt lacks in experience he makes up for in spirit, but not even that equates to the eons of knowledge you have Starscream."

Acknowledgement started to flood the seeker's crimson optics, an understanding at what the Prime was hinting at. The strong arms that were folded over the seekers chest slowly uncurled as Starscream's jaw began to drop.

"Starscream, Silverbolt has requested you become the Aerial commander. He wants you to teach them what you know and prepare them for battle."

Starscream blinked at the Prime. "Your baby jets want me to teach them how to fight properly?" The dumbfounded shock was clear in the seeker's tone as uncertainty flittered through the fliers EM.

Nodding, the Prime's soft blue optics held the Decepticon's, his calm EM pushing out towards the other. "They do. Silverbolt knows that they are inexperienced and need the training. He is willing to sacrifice his leadership as Aerial commander, although he will remain the Aerialbot commander, in order to obtain the training he and his gestalt so desperately need."

Old feelings of needing power, the need to fight for power, rose from Starscream's tanks, and the old instinct to fight Megatron at every turn to attain his desire, spread through his frame like a wild fire. It made Starscream feel hot under his plating, like an invisible beast was scratching at his spark.

Swallowing hard, Starscream gave himself a mental shake, drawing himself from that dark desire, wishing desperately that his trine mates were not being intimate with each other so that he could open the bonds wide and greedily take the comfort they always provided. Instead, Starscream fed from the Prime's calm EM, the feeling that the other trusted him far more than any other, filtering through to the seeker. It calmed him down, made him feel important, not so left out; a feeling his trine had accidently roused within him so often.

"I..." Starscream tried to start, giving his helm a soft shake. "Do your baby jets even realize what they are in store for?"

A deep, friendly chuckle rumbled from the Prime, right from his chest, his engine revving high in his amusement. It was the kind of laugh that Starscream only recalled from memory, the kind of laugh that came right from the spark. "I'm afraid not Starscream. But I believe that training with a proper air commander and a proper unit would do them some good. Teach them humility, at the very least."

Hesitating, Starscream knew that if this had been Megatron, there would have been some kind of price to pay for that position of power. Before, with Megatron, he would have jumped at the chance to lead a gestalt as powerful as the one Prime presented to him, and he would have attempted to pose a coup to overthrow Megatron once and for all.

Yet, this was not Megatron and there would be no too high price for the level of trust the Prime was willing to place with him. Optimus Prime honestly wanted his help, needed his help to protect his Autobots; mechs who were now Starscream's allies.

Humbled by the level of trust the Prime was willing to place in him, _him_ , of all mechs, Starscream hesitated. He was trying, for his trine as much as himself, to be different. To do things differently than before, to once and for all kill Megatron, the black scourge that had darkened so many lives for so long.

"I will have to think on it." Starscream said slowly, knowing that he should speak to Thundercracker. His lieutenant, of all mechs, would listen to how he felt, would try to understand where he was coming from; would be the only voice of reason in their chaotic, if not unnerving new world. "Make sure that my trine is okay with this as well."

Nodding Optimus took a step back, his EM moving out of reach of Starscream's and the seeker minutely lamented the loss of contact, confusing the seeker. The tri-colored mech chalked this unexpected wanting up to the backlash of feelings from his trine mates.

"Of course Starscream." Optimus' gentle voice rumbled; an ever constant in Starscream's new life. "Perhaps we can also discuss in further detail, the barn and the progress on your hanger as well, once you have spoken to your trine."

Nodding, Starscream suddenly found his voice, fighting to get its usual sneer back into place. "That'd be fine Prime. I'm sure Skywarp and Thundercracker won't mind the baby sitting duty."

Dismayed, wondering if he was doing the right thing by allowing Silverbolt's request, Optimus canted his helm. "Starscream, it's not baby-"

Again the seeker waved the Prime off as he brushed past him, heading back to the _Ark_. Starscream fought with himself to not stay by the Prime's side, and his warm frame, while he waited for his trine mates to finish.

He didn't dare drop the blocks, not quite yet as the trine leader knew they were hardly started yet. Forcing himself to keep walking, Starscream left the comfort of the Prime's EM and calm presence and went to the empty nothing of the _Ark_.

Optimus sighed, shoulders drooping as he watched the retreating back of the seeker, not sure what the stirring in his chest meant or why his spark reached out for the seeker. Optimus couldn't be sure why he was so bitterly disappointed that Starscream didn't stay.

()()()

Mirage watched, invisible and silent as his mate laughed with the small human. Liz was perched on his thick green knee, her lap top perched dangerously on her own knobby knees as she pointed out yet another dessert flower that they could plant along the trails.

Hound's happy laugh, much deeper but just as joyful, rang out with the human's, and Mirage felt a bolt of loss pierce his spark. When he had begun courting the green tracker, the spy understood that, unlike himself, Hound had a lot of friends, that he made friends very easily and trusted far too many.

Mirage was not used to sharing, had not had to during his time as a high born noble, and had no one to really share with during his early years as an Autobot either.

Sharing Hound with Trailbreaker was bad enough, but expected. The pair had been friends for eons and Mirage was not going to ask his lover to drop his best friend for him. Venting a deep sigh, the noble let his helm drop to his knees, glowering at the little human that seemed to have stolen his mate's attention.

Now it seemed that Mirage would be forced to share Hound with yet another creature, dividing the tracker's already limited time further. Scowling, Mirage was beginning to believe that these humans and their stupid horses were a waste of time and space. Without them at least, he would still be spending time with Hound.

The tracker would now be curled with him, settling down after a long day. He would certainly not be laughing and excited over a stupid little flower with a stupid little human.

Mirage tried to fight the jealousy that swelled, and failed miserably in his attempt. Heaving a sigh, the spy's spark spiralled down into loneliness.

**To Be Continued.**


	4. Catch Me If You Can

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Sunstreaker chases Danny around the city, Thundercracker and Starscream have a spark to spark.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Important Information
> 
> "Blah" Speaking
> 
> ::Blah:: comm. link
> 
> 'Blah'bonded speech
> 
> 'Blah' thinking
> 
> Astrosecond- 2.5 earth Seconds
> 
> Klik- 150 earth seconds/ 2.5 earth Minutes
> 
> Orn- 150 earth minutes/ 2.5 earth Hours
> 
> Joor- 60 earth hours/2.5 earth Days
> 
> Metacycle- 17.5 earth days/2.5 earth Weeks
> 
> Vorn- 10 earth weeks/2.5 earth months
> 
> Stellercycle-30 earth months/2.5 years
> 
> Breem-slang for a moment/minute.
> 
> Night Cycle: star down to star up
> 
> Day Cycle: Star up to star down
> 
> Authors Note: Hey guys! Sorry for the late update, I have taken part in this years Gift Fic exchange, which has eaten up a lot of my time. That story will be posted shortly, once the group has revealed who wrote which story.
> 
> As for this chapter, I have some mixed feelings on it. I can never tell if my chapters are any good or not, but this one is not one of my favourites. I really struggled with this one and I think it shows. So if its crap, I'm sorry. Chapter 5 is almost done, and I am liking it a lot more then this chapter.
> 
> As always, a huge thank you to my beta, Darkness_Rising! THANK YOU! :D
> 
> Disclaimer: I own only my OC's, nothing else.

Rage fuelled Sunstreaker as he crouched atop the flat roof of the parking bay, his blunt digits digging into the concrete, the black bubbling mess that had become his paint job, scarring up his arm. Fury and hatred for Danny swelled in his spark, and not for the first time the frontliner wondered what the hell his twin had seen in the little glitch.

After losing her back at her last base it had taken the Autobot a day and a half to find her again, tracking the little bitch right to the parking garage across the road, and now he quietly watched as her small figure walked up to the fourth level, wisely staying away from stair wells and the potential for cameras.

As much as he hated her, despised the human who had taken his twin from him, Sunstreaker found himself curious about her. Clearly she knew what she was doing, but _how_ good was she really? Smirking, Sunstreaker knew that Prowl would be proud of him.

He could have easily gone to the same parking garage, cornered and trapped her but instead he was gathering Intel on her, learning his quarry's habits, her skills. _Know thy enemy_. It was a human saying, and it galled Sunstreaker to use it, but the saying was apt.

He would watch her steal this car, the bright yellow Camaro she was stealing for Brandon and his little friends, and he would learn how she did it. Then he would drag her ass home and let Prowl tear into her for thieving. That would teach the little glitch!

The frontliner watched with his dark grin spreading as Danny stalked towards her own quarry, padding softly up to it, her soft fingers brushing its yellow finish. He watched with a grin, as she opened the door with ease, and he wondered where the keys she used to open the door had come from.

Shrugging off the thought, Sunstreaker knew it was time to confront the human. She now had a car and Sideswipe had done nothing but brag about how good a driver she was, so now it was time to test her true mettle. Grinning as he dropped down into his sleek alt mode, the frontliner tore down the garage ramps, the grey walls a blank blur as he raced for the street.

It would take Danny time to get the car started and ease the sports car onto the road but the Autobot had to make sure he got to there before her. He wanted her to see him, he wanted to see the little glitch panic when she saw him. He was curious to see if she would bolt or try to fight again.

He honestly hoped she froze, just so he could watch her panic. He would get a dark thrill out of that; then he would smash that pathetic little car she stole as revenge for what she had done to his paint job. Black rage flushed his systems, making his engine red line and had he been in his root mode he would have felt the heat creep up from his chest to his neck and into his face.

Sunstreaker would make sure she paid for what she had done to his pristine frame, one way or another, and he would enjoy making her suffer for it.

A dark glow spread through Sunstreaker as he crawled slowly through traffic, coming to a rolling stop at the exit of the parking garage, in easy sight when Danny came from the bay. The few short moments seemed to crawl by, slowly, agonizing. The anticipation, the near excitement that he would soon have her in his crosshairs, rocketing Sunstreaker's battle protocols online.

He would not make the same mistake twice and let the little glitch put him in a vulnerable place, he would not let her attack him again. Not like she had done with the Molotov cocktail, he would not allow his battle protocols, his killer instinct to go quite again so long as she was on the run.

The short Earth minutes dragged on, feeling like hours instead of the few short moments it took the car thief to drive the stolen Camaro down the ramp and to the exit. One moment there was nothing, then, almost as if a spell had been cast, the yellow Camaro appeared with a red headed female driver.

Grinning inwardly again, engine revving aggressively, Sunstreaker watched Danny as she eased the car forward, her bright brown eyes looking left and then right to check if the traffic was clear for her. As the brown orbs swept back to check the street once more, as a safe, normal driver would do, her eyes landed on his sleek, gold frame.

Engine revving hard and loud again, Sunstreaker jerked forward in an aggressive move, daring her to run. Dark delight spread through the frontliner's frame when he saw her panic, saw her mud colour eyes widen in shock and surprise. Her small, fleshy brow drew downward in confusion and her small mouth fell open in a silent 'O' of surprise.

Another thrill raced through Sunstreaker's lines at the sight of her frozen form; Sideswipe had been so adamant that the thief was a great driver, was fun to race with and go through the time trials with. She had, the crimson twin had boasted, not panicked when they did the figure of eights on the obstacle course.

Yet here she was, freezing at the mere sight of him. Sunstreaker knew she was as pathetic as the rest of her race. There were of course a few exceptions to that rule; Epps, Lennox and General Morshower were a few select humans who Sunstreaker tolerated. Mearing was an annoying little creation, but she did her job well and tended to leave the Autobots to themselves.

These civilians though, they set Sunstreaker's denta on edge. What did they know of sacrifice, pain or valour? People like Danny toiled in thievery for the fun of it, and it was people like her who had imprisoned him and his twin in the Pits of Iacon for their own enjoyment. Yes, people like Danny made his energon boil.

The one thing that glitches like Danny all had in common was they were all cowards. Any moment now the shock would bleed away to fear, and then he would have her cornered. Her pathetic mind would go numb, she would freeze and he could easily bring her sobbing back to the _Ark_.

Astonishment fluttered through Sunstreaker like a wild bird as the surprise at seeing him bled away into not fear, but excitement. A challenging look flooded Danny's soft brown eyes, hardening them with the same glint of anticipation he would see in Sideswipe when he was about to pull a prank.

The look of what was about to come, the sheer joy that they were about to do something _they were not suppose to be doing_ , and likely wouldn't be caught. Instead of running, instead of freezing, Danny revved the engine of the Camaro, edging the yellow car ever closer to his damaged frame in what was clearly a challenge.

Not one to be outdone, Sunstreaker's engine growled back, deep and loud. As far he was concerned, it was a no contest competition. His alt form was a Lamborghini and its greater horse power would eat the little Camaro for lunch any day of the week. He was clearly faster than it, and had better handling and manoeuvrability.

So why then would the little glitch think to challenge him with a slower vehicle?

Her lips curled into a little smirk, little white teeth gleaming in the sunlight as she held her gaze, not backing down. She revved the engine again, the smaller, weaker engine purring back at him, not powerful enough to hit the same deep growl.

The line of traffic began again, briefly separating Danny from Sunstreaker as normal people in their normal cars drove down their normal street.

For just a moment, such a brief moment really, Sunstreaker lost the yellow Camaro as Danny shot out from the exit of the parking garage, cutting off some poor driver as she tore into traffic. Before the golden frontliner could even make sense of what he had just seen, Danny flew down the street, weaving in and out of traffic and a thrill, hot and high, raced through Sunstreaker's lines at the thought of chasing Danny down, of having reason to race through traffic, breaking every speed limit in the city to corner the little glitch.

Engine growling low and aggressive, Sunstreaker roared after her, tyres smoking as they grasped for purchase. He shot like a bullet from a gun, a gold blur amongst the neutral colours that most humans picked for their cars.

He hardly had to push his engine before he caught up to the human femme, weaving as she did, catching up with ease. Smugly, Sunstreaker followed the thief in their high speed chase, zigging every time she would zagg; drifting right behind her as she took corner after corner hard in a desperate attempt to escape.

Instinct drove him, like a blood hound tracking a rabbit, right behind her as they raced through the outskirts of Las Vegas. He would try to pull along side of her, to drive her off the road and into the earth, but Danny would prove herself competent as she managed to stay ahead of the Lamborghini, for every time the Autobot tried to get around her, Danny would suddenly pull in front of him, slamming on her breaks for only a brief moment, forcing him to do the same unless he wanted to ruin his front end by ramming into her, before she took off again. Sometimes she would use other cars like small walls, keeping him separated from her until she could have more room to move once again, room to escape.

Although the yellow car was nowhere near as powerful as he, Danny knew how to drive it, knew how to use her surroundings to her advantage and keep him on his toes. Though he would never admit it, not to any one, ever, chasing the human through the city with a complete disregard to their own safety and everyone around them was kind of...well fun.

It made his core programming sing in contentment as his four tyres made contact with the ground, smoothly rolling over the asphalt in quick succession. His spark pounded in his chest with excitement and his engine run hard and hot as he easily kept pace with the human in her stolen vehicle.

It took the edge off his black, rolling hate and hurt, despite his anger at the human for destroying his finish. Driving was such a simple joy, it always soothed the Autobot, helped him relax and take a step away from his anger; and now he was able to chase the little glitch around a city where speed limits apparently no longer mattered.

It was bliss, a near high for Sunstreaker as he tore down the crowded street, heading deeper into the city, weaving around the slower, more pathetic drivers in his pursuit of the thief. However, just as all happiness seemed to for him, it ended abruptly.

Finally pulling behind the human in her stolen car, a mere car's length away, his engine rumbled evenly as tyres rolled over the smooth, dry road. Excitement ate at his lines as he began to slowly catch up, prolonging the inevitable, knowing he would soon have her trapped; and he enjoyed every moment.

Neither he nor Danny saw the police officer sitting quietly in one of the small side streets, the only thing the Autobot was aware of was the burn of his engine, knowing he was so close, so Sunstreaker was taken by surprise as the officer's vehicle suddenly darted out into traffic in front of him, fully intending on catching the yellow speedster the frontliner was himself chasing.

There was no time to react, one moment the Autobot was trailing behind the Camaro, the next he was spinning out, his gyros trying desperately to make sense of what they were sensing, giving him a sense of vertigo as his processor spun. Pain exploded from his front corner panel as the armour gave and dented as the rear of the police car was rammed into his front end.

He fought for control, fought to make sense of the blurring colours and the waves of nausea. When Sunstreaker finally stopped spinning out, he sat in the middle of the road for a moment, trying to make sense of what had just occurred, taking stock of the damage done.

He could hear someone yelling, screaming, at him, kicking his tyres in anger. The frontliner could feel his shaky hold on his calmness slipping, could feel the familiar rising of anger bubbling from his chest and outward.

The human who screamed, Sunstreaker assumed it was the officer, kicked his tyre again, demanding that he 'get outta the damned car', and his pain pulsed in time with his growing rage and bitter disappointment that Danny had likely escaped again.

The short lived happiness died as blinding rage took over once again. Tyres began to shake as rage took over and his golden plates shuttered against his softer protoform.

"GET OUT!" The officer yelled again, kicking at his back tyre, and Sunstreaker could feel his last nerve snap, his bubbling rage exploding and burning in a hot angry swell.

With a snarl and a high rev of his engine, Sunstreaker transformed, crouching high and dark over the human who had dared touch his frame. Ice cold blue optics pinned the stunned officer, his upper lip pulled back over flat denta in a silent snarl.

Slowly standing up, taller and higher than the officer could have ever dared imagine, Sunstreaker towered over the human like a dark sentry of death. The officer suddenly back peddled, scrambling to get away from the angry frontliner and his aura of rage.

His cowardliness disgusted Sunstreaker as the front liner watched the human fumble for his gun, his fleshy hands scrambling with the holster. Rage bolstered through the Autobot at the human's audacity, at the mere thought that his pathetic weapon could harm him.

Large black servos curled into tight fists which trembled at the thought of killing the human, smashing his puny little cruiser into dust fluttered through his processor. One arm ached from where the fire had licked at his armour, the other now dented and damaged ached just as much.

Another snarl rippled from the front liner as he glared angrily down at the little human, ready to kill at any given moment. He took a small step forward as the human scrambled back, terrified, the officer falling backwards as he scrambled to get away, crawling in his desperate attempt to escape.

"Sunny, you okay?" A soft, very feminine voice called out, almost worried and scared, which stopped Sunstreaker in his tracks.

The Autobot's helm snapped around so quickly and with such force, that he heard the cables in his neck strain as he pin pointed on _that_ voice. The hated nickname didn't even bother him as he focused in on _her_ wretched voice; the cause of all his anger, his annoyance, his hurt.

Danny had stopped the Camaro so suddenly that it was sideways across two lanes with the driver door facing him. The upper part of the thief's body was leaning out of the window, her small palms pressing into the window frame of the door. A worried look spread cross her tiny features.

"You...you okay?" she asked again, the concern slipping further into her face as her brow furrowed and her lips pulled into a small frown.

Focusing in on his target, battle protocol roaring to life as Sunstreaker descended past the killing threshold, Danny the sole focus of his rage. The anger, the hurt, the feeling of abandonment snowballed within the frontliner, creating a ball of tangled emotions and the former gladiator blamed the little human for each and every one of them.

Turning to the thief, a snarl rippling again from his chest, Sunstreaker stalked to the femme, forgetting the officer. The only word that ripped from the Autobot's chest was an angry, shaky, " _You!"_

Worry turned to shock, as Sunstreaker watched through a red haze as the human drew back, away from him, the first threads of fear finally coming from her, "Me? What did I do?"

"This is all your fault!" The frontliner snarled, his spark reaching out hopelessly for its other half, dismay echoing through him when it was not answered.

"My fault! I didn't hit you!" she cried back, nearly desperate; he could hear her tiny heart begin to pound in her chest, the cockiness gone as she saw firsthand how dangerous Sunstreaker could be.

"I'm only here because of you! And I swear you'll pay for this!" The frontliner snarled, his pain pulsing in time with his rage once more.

Brown eyes blinked up at the frontliner, flicking momentarily to his arms and their damage before drawing back up again. A tiny tongue flicked out like a reptiles to moisten cracked lips as her brown eyes focused on his angry face.

She hesitated a beat longer before she took a deep breath. "Listen I'm really sorry, I am." She paused again, "Really. But I can't go back yet."

Suddenly her small body was pulled back inside the car's frame and the Camaro sped off, black smoke trailing behind her. Danny had barely disappeared back into the stolen car before Sunstreaker was moving and with the deadly grace of a predator, the frontliner was on her, the tips of his digits grazing the back of the car as she took off.

With a violent snarl, he took one, then two running steps before he flung himself into his alt mode, his body transitioning easily from running to driving as he tore after her once again. The game had changed now and no longer was Sunstreaker's pursuit one of enjoyment and fun, a mere game of cat and mouse. Now it had taken a serious turn once again and Sunstreaker would do anything to see the human captured, to see the ugly Camaro destroyed and see her lose everything she had worked so hard to gain. Just like he had.

The playful weaving and breaking was over and in its place a game of deadly intent, and now Danny knew it. Each time he closed the space between them, the frontliner would ram into the back of the Camaro, taking out the tail lights and denting the fragile fibreglass panels. Sunstreaker couldn't bring himself to care that it dented his front end, too lost in the madness of battle to even give it a second thought.

Then, aided by a stupid move on her part, Danny escaped. She drifted around the corner of a busy intersection, first cutting off two cars to block her pursuer's path, before driving up and over the curb; the yellow Camaro cutting across the sidewalk in her desperate attempt to escape him.

Sunstreaker could only watch as the stolen vehicle disappeared around another corner, lost to the city as she ran, and hot rage burned through the frontliner as the broken tail lights disappeared. But it didn't matter how fast she ran, he knew where she was going.

Grinning inwardly, dark and cruel, Sunstreaker took off again. It was time to speak to his little friend Brandon.

()()()

When the little scrap yard came into view, Sunstreaker's fury had not died down, had not fizzled in the slightest; if anything it had increased, fuelled by his drive, sending him spiralling down into the madness of his battle protocol.

The beaten frame of the yellow Camaro stood out in the grey scrapyard, and all other feelings bled out from Sunstreaker, until all he was left with was his rage. The human would pay for his pain, he would smash her puny car to nothing and drag her home.

He would make sure she receive nothing, not a dime nor a cent for this little mission of hers; if that was the only way he'd get his revenge, then so be it.

Transforming with a snarl, Sunstreaker's damaged arms swung at his side, the dull armour no longer shinning in the sun. He stalked to the small squat building, not caring as he crushed the small wired fence that surrounded the perimeter under his pede as he stomped to the building where Danny hid.

The Autobot warrior paused, only briefly, when he heard Danny's frantic voice. "Brandon! Hurry up with the transaction, I have to go!"

"It's going as fast as it can. I can't make it go faster Danny!"

The girl hissed, causing Sunstreaker to grin. He had her scared, on the run. Just as it should have been from the get go.

"There!" Brandon hissed back at Danny. "The money has been transferred to your offshore account."

"Good." She hissed back, throwing every ounce of sass back at her fellow human that she had thrown at him.

Black metal shinning the dim light of the setting sun caught Sunstreaker's optics and the frontliner grinned darkly as his blue optics fell on Epps' stolen bike. The lieutenant would forgive him, that much the Autobot was sure. At least that's what Sunstreaker's blinding rage told him, reassured him.

Plucking the bike from the ground, Sunstreaker's cold smile slipped a little further into madness as he pressed one servo to the front tyre and the other to the back and smirking just a little more, the ice spreading a little further into his cold spark, Sunstreaker crushed the bike between his servos, turning the once gleaming bike into a crumbled ball of steel.

The maniacal grin did not lessen at Danny's concerned words when she wondered out loud what the noise was as metal screeched and squealed. Then with an easy flick of a wrist, Sunstreaker lightly tossed Danny's only source of escape.

The black ball of steel sailed easily through the air, landing with a heavy thud at the still broken bay doors, sliding a few feet, the loud, horrid noise drowning out the conversation between the humans. The silence which followed warmed the dark parts of the Autobot's spark, knowing he had spooked the humans enough to stall their pointless chatter, silencing Danny's big mouth for a little while at least.

He heard the femme curse, heard the bitter disappointment and misery that she had not only had been caught, but Epps' bike was a crushed ball of steel, useless to her endeavours.

The softly spoken words were music to Sunstreaker's audios, knowing he had managed to quell Danny's large mouth and her biting words. Although it didn't sooth the anger in his spark, the bitterness that his twin had chosen her over him, but it did bring the frontliner a measure of joy that he had managed to get one up her.

"Danny," he called out to her, his voice smooth, mocking and cold. "Let's go. You have no way out now."

The human was silent, hidden inside the building he had her trapped in, her scent and fear wafting through the area. He knew he had her trapped, she knew she was trapped. The fight was over now.

"Now Danny!" he hissed, his tone angry, his rage bubbling.

"I'm coming!" Danny snapped back, her small voice muffled by the walls that separated them, but Sunstreaker could still hear the anger there.

Grinning to himself, Sunstreaker preened silently. He had finally cased Danny to snap. True, it had been a tad more difficult than he had originally predicted, but in the end he had still won.

Crossing his arms, Sunstreaker felt himself creep back from the killing threshold, felt his battle protocols begin to go dormant now that he had her pinned. The frontliner heard the femme's soft, light footsteps, echoed by the hearts of her fellow humans pounding in their chests. He could hear Danny's thumping in her own chest while she mumbled softly, some dumb song under her breath.

"Move it Danny!" Sunstreaker snapped just before she appeared at the mouth of the broken door way, and the former gladiator heard himself gasp, his battle protocols snapping back to life.

Danny stood at the doorway, brown leather jacket snug around her body, dark satchel thrown over a single shoulder and a shot gun in her tiny hands; the butt of the weapon was pressed hard to her shoulder, aimed high at his face.

Sunstreaker's processor knew what he was staring at, and that it didn't have the power to actual do any major damage to his frame; it would be more of a distraction than anything else. But he still couldn't quite believe the women had the audacity to point the thing at him.

Although, if the Autobot took the time to ponder it, the fact that Danny was pointing a gun at him should not have surprised him. She did throw a Molotov cocktail at him after all.

Rage didn't have time to rekindle, he didn't have time to drop back past the killing threshold as Danny stepped around the corner of the building, her own anger clear on her face as she took aim and pulled the trigger.

There was a boom followed by a stinging pain under a cold blue optic; the shot gun blast peppered mostly under his right optic and along the ridge, some of the tiny pellets spreading across his cheek and the bridge of his nose. Static filled his vision as black servos shot up to his face, covering the sensitive silicone lining, more out of shock rather than pain, surprise and rage filling his lines.

His finned helm shook to clear his vision and Sunstreaker instantly spotted the small cluster of humans by the bay door, all staring up at him in shock, the shot gun laying by their feet, forgotten and useless. Danny was already across the yard, scrambling over the fence that separated the junk yard from the public.

With a snarl, Sunstreaker darted for the human, crossing the pavement in a few steps, hoping to catch Danny before she had gotten too far, but the little human had managed to get over the fence and jumping down to the other side, she darted to the sky high piles of scrap metal.

Losing sight of her as she bolted behind a pile of crushed cars, Sunstreaker snarled, yelling at the running human, demanding that she come back. When she didn't respond he stormed after her, stepping on another fence, chasing her down, not caring in the least about the damage he left behind him.

Rage continued to fuel the golden mech, his battle protocols now at full force and demanding blood and death in payment of the damage done to his frame. He would find the thief and he would...well he didn't know what he was going to do but he wanted to stomp on her, beat her into the ground like he would with Cliffjumper or Brawl. But Danny was small and delicate, and would actually die if he tried to exact his vengeance out on her in the way he wanted to, the way he craved to.

Snarling and spitting like an angry cat, Sunstreaker shoved over the nearest pile of scrap, following the scent that was specifically Danny. Winding through the tall piles of scrap metal and crushed cars, the golden Autobot followed the human's scent like a hound dog tracking a fox.

The former gladiator forced himself to take deep, calming vents, trying to step away from the killing edge. He needed to be calm when he found her, wherever she was hiding, so that he didn't accidently kill her in a blinding rage.

Shoving over another stack of scrap metal, Sunstreaker snarled, calling out for the thief, ordering her to come out, telling her that there was no place for her to hide. The Autobot followed Danny's scent to the other end of the scrap yard, his arms still aching and his cheek stinging.

Sunstreaker tracked her odour all the way to the fence on the opposite side of the property, its trail leading over the fence and across the road. For the first time since his pursuit of Danny, Sunstreaker felt insecurity bleeding through his rage, the first wisps of failure, but still he pushed on, stepping over the fence and tracking Danny's scent as far as she ran.

The Autobot traced her all the way to an empty road where her scent just sort of…disappeared. Glancing down one end of the road and then the other, Sunstreaker was met with nothing but desert. A thought, the only logically reason as to how Danny could have disappeared with no hint to which way she had gone, was that she had hitched hiked, or even hopped into the box of a truck without the driver knowing.

Either way, Danny was long gone.

Sunstreaker screamed into the hot desert air, loss and failure bubbling from his chest, drowning out the rage, shutting down the battle protocols completely. He had lost the little glitch for the third time. Sunstreaker screamed again, the failure burning worse than any acid.

()()()

Callie sighed as she sat on the edge of a med berth, small arms crossed over her chest, her chest tight as sad feelings spread through her small body. Blinking back tears from her dark blue eyes, she forced herself not to cry, determined not to allow the tears to slip.

Since Danny had stormed from the base, everything had fallen apart, going from bad to worse. It was not something that Callie could blame solely on her cousin, even though it was too easy to do so, but it just seemed that everyone had been miserable and moody since the frontliner had gone chasing Danny, and nothing seemed to be able to lift the gloomy feelings from the _Ark_.

Mirage and Hound were constantly fighting now, about what Callie wasn't sure. She just knew that they were and it seemed to be all the time. If the woman was to hazard a guess, they were fighting because of Liz. Hound and her younger cousin were working on something, what exactly Callie had no idea, but it had to do with a garden of some kind.

When Liz had become interested in horticulture was a mystery to Callie, but it lead to Hound spending a lot of time with the young hacker, and the more time he spent with Liz, the less he spent with Mirage, and it seemed to be rubbing the noble the wrong way.

On top of all that, Sideswipe was moping around, desperately missing his twin, the stench of guilt so strong that Callie could practically smell it herself. Sideswipe was blaming himself for pushing Sunstreaker away and he was now reaping the consequences of it.

He at least had Skywarp to cheer him up, when the purple seeker wasn't being harassed by Cliffjumper. The blonde felt a rush of hatred towards the red minibot; the little horned bastard didn't get the hint, and tormented the seekers until they finally snapped, leading to more than one occasion with either Thundercracker or Skywarp in the brig or worse, in solitary. Sometimes Sideswipe would, if the crimson frontliner was with the seekers, snap himself, throwing a punch at the smaller Autobot.

Just to make things a little bit worse, Thundercracker was ignoring her. For what reason Callie just couldn't fathom, she simply had no idea what she had done to drive her guardian away. Perhaps he was too busy trying to mend things with Starscream, or taking care of Skywarp to bother with her and maybe when things calmed back down, they'd spend time together again.

Sighing, Callie fought back the bitter tears as her legs kicked out, dangling over nothing as she sat. It just didn't make sense why he seemed to be avoiding her now. They used to go flying at least once a day and would have breakfast together every morning. That way at least, they had the chance to spend time together before the day began. But now he always seemed to be busy, never wanting to spend time with her, barely even taking the time to have breakfast with her.

It hurt that he ignored her, hurt that he didn't seem to care about her anymore after all they had been through. They had nearly died, and that now seemed to mean nothing as Thundercracker pawned her off on Ratchet, leaving her to 'train' with the surly medic while he disappeared to do whatever it was he was up to.

The first miserable tears slipped from the corner of her eyes, despite her rapidly blinking, trying desperately to stop them from coming. If she still at least had Danny with her maybe the hurt wouldn't have been so bad, and her cousin could probably help her figure out what was going on.

As it was, she felt terribly alone, abandoned by the Decepticon she had come to love as a brother.

Ratchet walked into the medbay, instantly spotting the human who sat with her back to him on the edge of the med berth. The medic could see the woman wiping at her eyes with the back of her hand and the old mech's spark clenched in his chest.

He would have to have a little talk with the blue seeker who called himself her guardian. Ratchet understood he was trying to keep the barn and the horses a surprise for her, but that was no excuse to make her feel forgotten. No excuse to make her cry, especially in his medbay.

Taking a deep intake of air, Ratchet went to talk to Callie, to try and give some kind of awkward comfort before Swoop and First Aid arrived for their daily training. He would attempt to offer encouragement and reassurance that Thundercracker had not forgotten about her.

The Autobot CMO stalked across his medbay, frown plastered across his face as he struggled for a kind word for the human when Ratchet stepped on a small round disk. Confused as to what he stepped on, Ratchet looked down just as there was an audible click and before the medic could do a thing, bright pink and green paint shot up at his face like a geyser, staining his face and chest with the clashing colours.

Surprised, Callie turned to face Ratchet, body tense and ready to jump onto the flat surface of the berth and run should she be attacked. Instead she felt her jaw drop as she stared in shock at the currently paint covered CMO, feeling the sudden rage wash over the medic.

Blue optics blinked, Ratchet's jaw working as he tried to calm himself, tempering his rage. Taking a deep, shuddering vent, Ratchet managed to keep his tone polite and courteous as he lightly spoke to Callie. "I'm sorry Callie, I just have to go kill Sideswipe and Skywarp."

Without another word, paint flicking everywhere as Ratchet spun around, the Autobot medic stormed from the medbay, snatching a wrench on his way out. But not even the image of Ratchet covered head to hip in paint, leaving a thick trail of the brightly coloured substance in his wake, could produce a smile from the human.

()()()

Thundercracker looked at the half built barn which was tucked at the back of the Autobot base, along with the pathways that Hound and Trailbreaker had painstakingly put into the ground with a critical optic. Grapple and Hoist were going over the designs for the barn a fourth time, planning out how to utilise the space just so.

The young Aerialbots, curious as they were, were clustered around Liz, blue optics bright with interest as she pointed things out on her laptop, talking rapidly. The girl was covered head to toe in dirt from helping Hound and Trailbreaker and was pointing out which plants they were going to be putting alongside the new pathways and riding trails.

The Aerialbots, for whatever the reason, seemed to be enthralled by the tiny girl's words and information; even Slingshot was silent and attentive as she went through different plants.

Heaving a sigh through his vents, Thundercracker crossed his arms over his heavily armoured chest, squeezing at his elbows in an attempt to garner some form of comfort. The barn was coming along smoothly, and quickly with the help of the two builders who were planning it. Everything was going well, the whole team coming together to finish it before Callie figured out what was going on.

If only Cliffjumper would stop harassing them, then maybe they could settle in a little more amongst the Autobots.

The minibot, it seemed, always had some cutting remark or scathing insult aimed for someone. He was just as nasty towards his fellow Autobots, 'bots like Sideswipe or Mirage, as he was towards his new seeker allies. Cliffjumper, it seemed, didn't care; so long as the minibot deemed you unacceptable, you were forced to endure his immaturity.

Forcing anger back down, Thundercracker tried to keep his mind on the little side project at servo and not the irritating little minibot. But the red mech's mocking words were always in his helm, like a nasty little reel that was constantly playing. Mocking words about Starscream and the things Megatron had done to him, words about Skywarp and his intelligence.

There was only so much Thundercracker could take, and his short fuse was getting a little shorter each day. Something had to change. Something had to be done about the little red fragger.

He felt Starscream's EM before he saw his commander, and he took comfort in it. Coming to stand next to his lieutenant, Starscream brushed against Thundercracker's arm, knowing, sensing his subordinate's dark feelings.

Nodding to his commander, dark optics still pinned on the barn, the dark blue seeker sighed. "Cliffjumper went at Skywarp once again."

Returning his own nod, Starscream lightly pressed against his wing mates EM, offering understanding and unwavering support. "I also heard that Cliffjumper and Brawn went at you as well." Crimson optics flicked to the blue seeker.

Heaving another sigh, a blue shoulder guard lifted in a nonchalant shrug. "It happened. Nothing to be concerned about Scree."

Starscream shifted again, frame swaying from one side to the other, wings softly flicking against the blue ones at his side. "It's not you I am concerned about TC. I'm more concerned about Skywarp losing his patience and attacking. It's all we would need for him to destroy what we have begun to build here."

The truth, cut and dry, just as Starscream always was.

"Skywarp will be fine." Thundercracker nearly snapped, his tone aggressive and annoyed, EM flaring and ragged.

Crimson optics narrowed, slanting to give the other seeker a sideways glare, "Just as he was fine the other day with Sideswipe?"

A soft growl rumbled through Thundercracker's engine. "That was an accident."

"We can't afford accidents Thundercracker. Not right now."

Another growl resonated through his engine. "We did not leave that pit just to be tormented here."

Nodding, Starscream silently agreed. "I know." He grumbled, knowing he had come out to speak to Thundercracker about something completely unrelated. "Prime wants me to take on the role of Aerial Commander and train the baby jets."

The surprise knocked any conflicting emotions right out from Thundercracker like a punch to the gut. Wings swept back in shock, crimson optics widening as his helm canted to the side. "What?" he demanded.

Taking a deep intake of air, vents hissed as they drew oxygen in, flushing Starscream's systems. "Prime wants me to train the baby jets." He repeated.

Stunned, Thundercracker just stared. "I thought that's what you said, but I had to be sure."

Starscream remained silent, allowing Thundercracker to continue. "Why?" he demanded, surprise still too great.

The trine leader sighed. "It was Silverbolt who approached Prime. He knows his team is untrained and young. He understands that their luck will run out if they do not have a proper commander in place, one who has battlefield experience."

"And they asked for you?"

Starscream frowned at his trine mate, optics flashing. "Who else could they choose? It's not like they have an abundance of experienced fliers here."

Helm shaking, Thundercracker's optics drew back to the barn. "Fair point. But….younglings." a dramatic shudder raced through Thundercracker's large frame. "Do you even remember what it was like to train younglings?"

Starscream snorted as Thundercracker's wide crimson optics turned back to him. "Because I do Starscream. They're annoying and loud and brash. They think they _know_ everything, and they don't follow orders. I mean younglings Starscream. _Younglings_."

Starscream nearly laughed, relief flooding his spark at the fact that Thundercracker hadn't instantly said no. "I remember Thundercracker. I remember. I'm just not sure why you bonded with one," The blue seeker snorted at the comment, amusement flooding the trine bond, "But I remember." Starscream sighed again, becoming sombre once more. "I don't know what to do." The tri coloured seeker admitted. "And besides Prime, you're the only one I trust here."

Thundercracker moistened his suddenly dry lips with the very tip of his glossa, narrowing the bond with Skywarp as to not worry his mate. "You need to consider the pros and cons." Thundercracker stated softly, turning his full attention to his trine leader.

Counting on his digits in emphasis, Thundercracker listed off the pros. "One, it would instil trust amongst the crew to train their young fliers, and that's something that we need, desperately. Two, we would also be able to ensure the Aerialbots survival. They are no longer our enemies but fellow fliers, and young fliers who have never been trained by other fliers." Thundercracker snorted. "It's embarrassing to have a young gestalt of fliers trained by a shuttle and ground pounders. It's our civic duty to train them."

Starscream nodded in agreement. "Coding will demand it."

Thundercracker shrugged and nodded. "It will." He agreed. "But the third reason as to why you should do this is that it would make you a real commander again, an Aerial commander at that. Something that Optimus has not had since the beginning of the war." Two pairs of crimson optics met. "We have always ruled the skies and that was what gave Megatron the upper servo. Our loyalty was not misplaced in the beginning, but Megatron has forgotten how powerful our force was. He will soon remember."

A devious grin then spread across Thundercracker's handsome face, no longer a shadow of its former self. "And being a proper commander again does have its perks, mainly in that Cliffjumper won't be able to harass us any longer. You'll out rank him and likely have the ability to throw his aft in the brig."

Starscream nodded; all things he had considered already.

"The only con I can see is that we'd have to deal with younglings again." Thundercracker sighed dramatically, almost slouching. "Well, that and the extra responsibilities, but you've always been good with those." A dark look came into Thundercracker's optics. "And you'll have to face Megaton once more."

Starscream fought the flinch on hearing his previous master's name, memories of his wings being torn off and stuffed into The Hole still fresh in his mind. The seeker forced it away, his shoulders the only thing that twitched in his effort to remain still. "I can't hide on the _Ark_ forever." The trine leader muttered, subconsciously taking a step towards his trine mate. "Better to face Megatron helm on and not let him ruin this too."

Thundercracker snorted. "Better to face Megatron with the Autobot army at our backs."

Starscream nodded, feeling the openness of the bond, the oneness of trine. Almost like how it had been back on Cybertron, just as war was breaking out.

"You're going to help me train them." Starscream vented, almost making it an order.

Thundercracker snorted, watching as Mirage marched from the _Ark_ to where Hound sat in the dirt with Trailbreaker. "Of course, Commander Starscream." A smirk spreading over his lips.

Starscream shifted. "You think I should do this? Be… be Prime's Aerial commander?"

_To be the Prime's Decepticons_ were the words Callie had used, in what seemed so long ago now. To be a unit of their own while at the same time, being part of a bigger picture. But if that hope was to ever to become a reality, they needed some form of authority. Something that would help them build trust amongst the Autobots.

"It would certainly help us as well as them." Thundercracker added.

Starscream sighed as he watched Mirage stand with his arms crossed over chest, his glower moving between Hound, Trailbreaker and Liz. "I was worried you'd say that TC. It's just…" the seeker trailed off.

Thundercracker lightly bumped Starscream's wrist, hoping to push as much comfort as he could. "I know, they are Autobots. But they are still fliers."

"They are young, confused fliers who have no idea where they come from or what their roots are."

The blue jet silently agreed, still watching as Mirage glared at his lover. "Someone needs to teach them to defend themselves."

Starscream snorted. "Teach them to fly. Silverbolt is afraid of heights and Fireflight likes to chase butterflies in battle." He shifted his own attention from the annoyed Towers brat to his trine mate. "It was funny when we were enemies, but now that they are allies, it's a liability." Starscream looked down, suddenly becoming interested in his pede's. "I do not wish to see them harmed. They are far too young to be fighting this war."

Thundercracker nodded in agreement. "They are new sparks. They are younger than we were when we joined Megatron." Heaving a sigh, the blue seeker continued. "Someone needs to teach them to protect themselves, there are too few of us fliers left."

Anxiety chewed at his spark and Starscream shifted in worry once more. It had been a long time since he had been a new commander, and never within the Autobot ranks. How was he to know what was acceptable?

A dark servo reached out and gripped Starscream's bright red shoulder guard and squeezed. "I will help you. So will Skywarp and Optimus Prime. We'll all help with the younglings."

The surety and conviction in Thundercracker's voice lifted Starscream's spirits, reminded him of the confidence the trine leader usually oozed in. Starscream's equally dark servos snatched Thundercracker's wrist suddenly, squeezing tightly, accepting the reassurance his trine mate gave him.

"Thank you."

The blue seeker grinned at his trine leader, both hanging onto each other in a moment of comfort before drawing away, gruffly returning to their usual arrogant stance.

Watching Mirage suddenly huff in annoyance, sick of being ignored by his lover, the noble spun around and stormed back to the _Ark_. Liz's brown eyes followed the blue and white Autobot sadly, the only one to notice the spy when he was so desperate to be noticed by his lover.

Starscream shook his helm with another deep sigh. "You think Sunstreaker is having an easy time with Danny?"

Thundercracker snorted. "If Danny is anything like Callie, not at all."

"I almost feel sorry for the Autobot."

The blue seeker managed a snort. "Better him than us I think."

Starscream managed a dry laugh, the seeker's usual smirk coming back to life. "Come on, how bad can Danny really be? She is only a single human."

Even Thundercracker laughed at his trine leader's words.

**To Be Continued…**


	5. A Diffrence in the State of Mind

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Important Information  
> “Blah” Speaking  
> ::Blah:: comm. link  
> ‘Blah’ bonded speech  
> ‘Blah’ thinking
> 
> Astrosecond- 2.5 earth Seconds  
> Klik- 150 earth seconds/ 2.5 earth Minutes  
> Orn- 150 earth minutes/ 2.5 earth Hours  
> Joor- 60 earth hours/2.5 earth Days  
> Metacycle- 17.5 earth days/2.5 earth Weeks  
> Vorn- 10 earth weeks/2.5 earth months  
> Stellercycle-30 earth months/2.5 years  
> Breem-slang for a moment/minute.  
> Night Cycle: star down to star up  
> Day Cycle: Star up to star down
> 
> Authors Note: I’m back! YAY! After some (much) struggle, the next chapter is up! Weee! 
> 
> Thank you to everyone who reviewed and commented on chapter four (wow that was a long time ago!) 
> 
> And a HUGE thank you to Rising_Darkness who beta’d this chapter and all the support you’ve given me this last little while. :) 
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> Additional Warning: Some pretty heavy NC-17 near the end, so if that’s not your think, please skip. 
> 
> Disclaimer: I own only my OC’s, nothing else

Furious didn’t even come close to how angry Sunstreaker felt as he rumbled his engine aggressively, barely able to contain his rage as he slid into a parking spot; once again in the main strip of Vegas. His frame throbbed hotly in his anger, and as his doors trembled in rage he was barely able to keep his tyres from quaking too.

He wanted to see Danny hurting. Maybe not in agony, per say, as that would only get him in more trouble with Prowl, Prime and Sideswipe. But he wanted to see her emotionally hurting, crying at the very least.

He ignored the swarm of humans around him, ignored their gentle bumping and pressing against his yellow plates, forcing him to cringe at the soft contact while the oils from their disgusting skin left translucent marks across his dull finish; some even pointing to the damage to his front panels, sighing sadly over ‘such a nice car with such a crappy paint job.’

It was enough to make Sunstreaker’s plating crawl, and his spark burn in his chest; partly in a blinding anger, and partly in a deep hurt. He took pride in his appearance, made sure his golden frame shone in perfection, preening when others took notice.

Now they noticed for the wrong reasons, they noticed for the damage and dullness. It bruised his already dented ego, forcing him a little lower until he was face first into the proverbial mud. It hurt when others thought him ugly, thought him to be weak. He had left that part of his life behind long ago; he was sick of being the underdog, the victim.  He was sick of being _weak_.

This was all Danny’s fault, and he would find a way to hurt that little scrapling yet. The frontliner suppressed a snarl as a passing black motorcycle nearly touched his heated plating, almost taking off his driver side mirror. Primus, humans couldn’t drive! He had lost count of the number of accidents he had almost gotten in to, none of which involved the chase with the dumb little femme.

Everything was just adding up, becoming too much too fast; Danny’s inability to submit to his will, the awful city they were trapped in, and now his damage, it was just all too much. The frontliner just wanted to go home and curl in his berth for the next cycle, preferably with his twin.

But for that to happen, he needed to go home with Danny.

Shifting again, trying to get reconfigured plates of armour to settle against his protoform, Sunstreaker supressed a sigh. He had changed his alt mode from the glorious Lamborghini, to something less dignified in his opinion.

The yellow Corvette he had managed to scan was nowhere near as sleek or close to perfect as the Lamborghini alt form he had come to love. But Sunstreaker wanted to catch Danny, and he would never get her to come quietly so long as he stayed in his Lambo form.

He was nothing but a living trap, one that would lure the femme trapped into his alt form so he could finally drag her sorry aft back to the _Ark_. All he had to do was lay in wait for the thief to steal him, and this time the glitch wouldn’t recognize him, giving him a chance to escape the city with her.

Smirking inwardly, Sunstreaker waited, hoping that this time the little witch would turn up. He had spent almost a day and a half driving around and parking in random places around the city, hoping to catch her attention. So far, his quiet waiting had yet to yield any results, but it was only a matter of time before she came.

Settling into the parking spot, trying not to outwardly cringe at the soft touches of the swarming humans around him, Sunstreaker let his mind fall into a light recharge, needing to rest after days of hunting. It was only when a very familiar light touch of soft finger tips ran up from the ugly yellow bumper, trailing along his quarter panels before coming to rest at his silver door handle, did sensors snap on line. Sunstreaker could instantly smell the human next to him, and knew it was Danny who stood idly by his driver side door.

Silent scanners filled the area, allowing him to _see_ her as her head shifted up and down the street, no doubt looking for his ‘owner.’ The whole thing made Sunstreaker grin to himself. The little human was lulled into a false sense of security, he had her fooled now; she was actively avoiding a dark gold Lamborghini, not a sunshine yellow corvette.

She didn’t seem to notice the damage to his front end as her brown eyes scanned the area, a smirk silently growing on her pinched face. Sunstreaker forced himself not to care at how tired she looked, how worn out and haggard her appearance was.

All the greedy little glitch was worried about was snatching up her next catch and making a quick buck, and not who she may have hurt in the process. Well, Sunstreaker was more than happy to put those deeds to rest, and if he got to crush her spirit and rough her up a bit in the meantime, then so be it.

He felt the thief tense as her small hand wrapped around his door handle and pull lightly. She nearly sagged, exhausted, in relief as the door popped open easily and no car alarm blared loud. Sliding easily into the driver’s seat, Danny closed his door gently, and clicked her seat belt around her chest and waist; her weight barely registering along his sensor net as she settled into the tall seat. 

The frontliner suddenly felt giddy, but he forced himself to remain still, he had the little glitch trapped now, even if she had yet to realise it. 

He watched her through internal sensors as she prised open the panel under his steering wheel, he grinned as she did so, her confidence growing while she spliced the wires. He felt his engine turn over once, twice, starting on the third attempt as she stroked the wires together.

His engine purred to life, soft and gentle in comparison to his usual powerful growl, and Sunstreaker forced his frame to relax as she turned on the radio, some kind of weird rock music playing in his speakers, something about being radioactive; her thin fingers gentle on him as though she feared he would break.

Humming along with the music, the red head drove his frame back into traffic smoothly, easing back into the slow line of cars along the strip, and Sunstreaker smirked to himself once again as they began to pick up speed when the lights went green. Now was the time, he thought, when she thought she was safe, home free.

The irony that Sunstreaker had once though himself to be free, safe from the pits when he was a youngling, was not lost on the front liner, and it sickened him for a moment to think he was doing to her what others had done to him so long ago; that he was about to rip her from her safe place, just like he had been.

But the feelings were squashed when he reminded himself that Danny was more like the mechs who had taken him from his home than she was like him. She only cared about the money she could make, and not the people she hurt in the process, just like every human out there, just the mechs who had taken him and his twin away, and hurt them.

Resolve quickly hardening, Sunstreaker prepared for the fight that was about to come. Slipping past the killing threshold, the Autobot sunk down low into his battle protocols, calling for him to fight, and his engine rumbled on its own accord, causing the human’s heart rate to suddenly spike.

The seat belt suddenly cinched tighter around her flat stomach and to her chest, pinning her to the black leather seat, the seat flying backwards as far as it could go, Danny’s finger tips brushing the steering wheel as her small feet reached out for the peddles.

Sunstreaker gave a cold chuckle, his voice booming around her as he cut the radio, and the thief cursed, her small hands clinging to the arms rests. He could feel, almost as though it was through padding, as her tiny fingers curled into the rests, nails biting into the leather.

“Sunstreaker, let me the hell go!” She spat as the former Lambo-former suddenly gunned it, easily weaving in and out of traffic, his speed increasing with no effort at all. He could feel the wind sliding over his alt form, hyping him up, urging him to go faster.

He accelerated, ran a red light, the blazing horns behind him called after him as he cut other drivers off. The human gasped, her tiny body tensing as cars on either side of them skidded to a stop, nearly hitting them, and fear rolled off of her in thick waves. Her reaction made Sunstreaker laugh as he finally gave the little witch what she had coming, and he hoped it made her feel a fraction as awful as he did.

“Sunstreaker!” she nearly yelled, her chest heaving as she panted, her small body shaking. “Let me out! Now!”

“No.” the frontliner said coldly, smaller engine revving hard, red lining as he tore through the busy street.

“Sunstreaker, this isn’t funny!” He could hear the panic creeping into her voice as she clung to him, hands shaking.

“Neither was lighting me on fire!”

“Okay, I get it, you’re mad! Just let me out!”

“No, I was mad when you lit me on fire. Mad when you shot me, in the face! Now I’m _pissed_.” The front liner hissed back as he banked around the corner, causing the human to scream, small hands catching at the bar on his roof.

He laughed at her fear. “I’m dragging your skinny ass back to base to let Optimus deal with you.”

Small body shaking in the front seat, knuckles going white with how tight she clung to him, Danny managed to make her voice sneer. “I swear to God Sunstreaker, if you don’t let me go, I’ll kick your ass!”

The frontliner laughed at her, high and mocking. “Shouldn’t curse your God Danny.”

“Go fuck yourself!” she hissed back at him, angering the Autobot all the more.

Coming up to a red light, Danny tried to brace herself, thinking he was going to run the red, hoping they wouldn’t get T-boned, when a terrible plot was born in the golden mech’s mind. Grinning to himself, Sunstreaker suddenly slammed on his brakes as hard as he could, his frame skidding along the slick road. 

Danny’s body, not ready for the sudden stop, jerked forward, the front seat releasing as she did, sending her face first into the hard steering wheel, her face ricocheting off the horn, a tiny beep only adding salt to the wound. Just as quickly, Sunstreaker jerked the seat back, pulling Danny’s small hands away from his steering wheel once more; her hands flying up to her face to grasp her nose as her eyes watered, before she pulled them away momentarily to check for blood, making sure the Autobot didn’t break the cartilage of her nose.

Hands clamped back to her face as Sunstreaker took off again, the frontliner cackling as he flew through the city, running the reds. Her booted foot shot up, kicking the steering wheel, jerking it and in turn them, momentarily into oncoming traffic.

“Ass hat!” She sneered at him, other insults on the tip of her tongue.

Sunstreaker ignored the kick and the mud on his wheel, as he sped up, knowing he had her well and truly trapped. “Danny, do us both a favour and sit there and shut up. It’s a long drive home.”

The back of her hand wiped once more at her nose, brown eyes hardened in blazing hot anger. It made Sunstreaker’s spark sing, knowing he had finally bested her. “You’re going to pay for that _Sunny_. That much I can guarantee.” 

The golden mech snorted, unimpressed by her threat. “Whatever _Danny_. You can explain it to Prowl when we get back to the _Ark_.”

The human snarled, a soft, small noise that barley registered. He had served in a millennia long war, with some of the loudest, nastiest Autobot’s ever to walk this plane. Her small growls were nothing to him.

Casting one last glare at the front window, brown eyes narrowed in disdain, and she hoped the Autobot knew how much she hated him at that very moment. Boots came up to perch on the edge of his leather upholstery, causing the Autobot to cringe as dirt dripped onto the black leather.  Initially unseen by Sunstreaker, small fingers fished into the lip of her boot and a small pocket knife was eased from the leather covering, fitting in her palm easily.

Unease flickered through Sunstreaker when he finally saw the tiny blade flash in the fading light, but he quickly forced it down. He had Danny trapped, she was his now and he would not allow her to escape again. 

The seat belt tightened around her waist and chest, causing Danny to gasp as the air was forced from her fleshy body, pinning her a little tighter to the frontliner’s seat, and Sunstreaker could feel the femme’s heart rate spike as the first hints of fear rolled from her small body.

But despite all of this, the fear rolling through her, it was with a steady hand that Danny managed to slip the blade under the seat belt by her waist, twisting the blade up so that the sharp edge pinched and scraped at the frontliner’s belt.

Sunstreaker growled when he felt the blade begin to slice at the thick material, arm going back and forth to cut the belt. “Stop that!” he hissed, engine working harder, frame going faster.

Danny didn’t even glance up at the Autobot’s angry words as she worked hard at the belt, the barely there sting of feeling something that was part of Sunstreaker being cut away, annoying the front liner. Snarling, the golden mech suddenly changed lanes, jerking the woman’s body to the side in a bid to get rid of the knife that slowly cut away at him. But the human ignored it all, her brown eyes focused, teeth gritted as she cut away at the belt. The belt finally snapped free, the mild stinging barely bothering Sunstreaker, knowing the glitch was free annoying him more so

Battle protocols roared to life, Sunstreaker was taking no more chances with the human. The chase had gone on long enough, and he quickly changed lanes as the belt gave way, and Danny lunged for the steering wheel.

Her soft body jerked awkwardly sideways, tumbling into his passenger seat, hands slamming into the padding with a grunt, but she caught herself before she hit her still sore face. Snarling, Sunstreaker wrapped the other seat belt awkwardly around her, trying to keep her pinned down in the small cabin of his new alt mode, body laying awkwardly across the two seats and the centre console.    

“Just stop!” He snarled at her as she squirmed, tearing at the passenger seat with her knife, trying desperately to get to the belt that bound her.

“Blow me.” She snarled back, causing confusion to flicker through the frontliner, never having heard that particular insult hurled at him before. Confusion turned to anger, the easiest feeling to latch on to in the wake of the human’s nasty words and slashing knife. Danny managed to wriggle the small hand with the knife free, the blade tearing into the other belt in a desperate bid for freedom.

The mild pain didn’t even register to the frontliner as he changed lanes again with the growl of his engine. Her small body shifted awkwardly in his cabin, forcing her to brace her booted feet against his driver door for support, trying to keep her body still while she tried to hack herself free.

Sunstreaker snarled again, rage rising while the need to just kill the glitch grew. All his problems would be solved by killing her, and the former gladiator was forced to push those old urges away. He was better than that, surely he could deal with one stupid little human.

“Danielle calm down!” He snarled as the belt snapped free with a soft grunt from the woman.

“Let me out,” she snarled as she crawled along his seats, curling one knee under her body, the other leg braced to the floor for balance. “And I’ll be a hell’a lot calmer!”

The golden mech snarled in time with his engine, the noise loud in the small cabin. “You know that won’t happen.”

Danny’s dark brown eyes narrowed in disdain at his front window before her small hands darted for the door handle. But Sunstreaker was forced to hit his breaks as the red light came up, and no way to get around the line of cars safely, and with a yelp Danny jerked sideways, her small leg crumpling under her slight body as the force of the stop dropped her to her knee, forcing her to sprawl over his passenger side seat.  Sunstreaker huffed a dark laugh, locking the door with an eerie _click,_ knowing the glitch was trapped now.

Let her tumble around his alt mode while he took her home.

Around them the hustle and bustle of Vegas continued, no one noticing the fight between the human and a possessed car.

Snarling, anger replacing any upset or fear the car thief once had, Danny forced herself to the seat, fully aware that the frontliner had locked her inside, her knife now lost when he had stopped so suddenly. Looking out the window, Danny smirked; she knew where she was, what part of the city they were in, and if she wanted to escape, she needed to do it now before Sunstreaker took her outside the city. Otherwise she’d be on her way back to the _Ark_ and nothing would stop the crazy Autobot.

Bracing herself into the seat a little tighter, small fingers curling around the edges Danny leant back, knowing the red would change soon, and she’d be like a leaf caught in the wind when Sunstreaker took off again.

With a grunt of effort, Danny slammed her feet into the passenger side window with all the strength she could muster.  Adrenaline pumped through her small body as Sunstreaker snarled, his anger spiking higher.

“I fucking hate you!” She sneered at the Autobot, putting every ounce of hatred she could into her voice, feet slamming into the glass again with a sickening crack.

Engine revving hard, the angry growl loud and clear for all to hear, Sunstreaker’s frame shook with supressed rage. “Stop doing that!” He sneered, knowing he needed to stay in alt mode while amongst too many humans. The less the humans that knew about them, the better.

The crack got bigger as Danny slammed her feet into the window again, stretching from the top to the bottom of his window.  “Blow me.” She snapped back, the phrase still lost on Sunstreaker as she hit his window a third time.

It was on the fourth kick that the glass of his passenger side door finally gave out, the glass shattering as the opposite light went yellow. With a grunt of effort, Danny managed to straighten herself, ignoring how the Autobot’s frame shook around her as Sunstreaker prayed for the green light.

As his cut seat belts hung helplessly by their seats, Danny scrambled upright, her upper body already half way out of the broken window, the jagged pieces cutting into her frail flesh in her desperate bid to escape.

Snarling, the Autobot sat still, horror running through him as the human dropped, head first out of his passenger side door, and to her freedom. Frame shaking on his wheels, he kept track of the human as she hauled herself upright, and he watched her bolt for the nearest building. Her thin form fading into the blazing lights of the neon around them as she ducked into a mall.

Rage, blinding and hot spiked through him; once again he had lost the femme to the city. His temperature spiked as anger and madness washed over him. He didn’t move when the light went green, or when the driver behind him honked at him to go; too angry and stunned that Danny had managed to escape him once more.

The honking grew more insistent, drivers cursing at him as they swerved around him, flipping him off as they sped past. Humiliation rose like a bitter energon from his tank, making him feel sick and weak. He had upheld his orders to remain hidden, but he had lost the glitch, and he was quietly mortified that he had once again been bested by a bag of flesh. Nothing but weak bone.

He wanted to scream, he wanted to yell out his rage. He wanted to find the largest Decepticon he could find and pick a fight. He would even settle for shadow boxing, as long as he got to break something with his fists, even if that something was his knuckles.

He had been so close! He had her! He fragging had her!

Rage caused him tremble, caused his plating to shake on his protoform. It made him…

Surprise shot through him like a bucket of icy water had been dumped on him, shocking him from his mind freezing rage. His broiling energon instantly cooled, becoming ice in his lines at the sight that stormed at him.

Danny marched with purpose, arms swinging, a sneer set in her pretty face and a wooden baseball bat clutched in one of her hands. A tall teenaged boy in a black and white referee’s uniform nearly ran to keep up with her angry march.  

“Ma’am! Ma’am you need to pay for that!” He called behind her, making desperate grabs for the wooden bat.

Rage returned tenfold, causing Sunstreaker’s engine to rumble angrily once more, his frame shaking on his wheels as he watched her approach, silently daring her to do whatever she had planned.

Clearly ignoring the running teen behind her, and his panicked look, her angry gaze pinned solely on the Autobot. His frame drew taut in waiting for her foolish attack, her eyes dark and narrowed as rage flickered though her brown orbs.

Sunstreaker’s engine revved hard, aggressively in a challenge, daring her to do whatever she had come to do, and in one smooth motion, she rearranged the bat in her hands so that she held it like a ball player, drawing her hands low on the handle. The Autobot knew what was about to come, and he waited for it. Prayed for it even, as it would only serve to give him reason to hate her just a little more; just another nasty story in a whole string of them, to tell Sideswipe about how terrible she really was.

With a snarl of effort, she swung the bat, the boy behind her gasping as she aimed for the passenger side mirror of the yellow sports car, taking it clean off with a painful crack. The teenager behind her gasped, taking a step back as the colour drained from his face, the words stuttering from his mouth. “You…You can’t…do that.”

Sunstreaker’s engine snarled under his hood, the power in his alt frame lessened from the change of vehicle form as Danny’s brown eyes narrowed further, her anger not hidden. “Oh, I’ve barley started!” She hissed, adrenalin flushing through her veins as her heart pounded in her chest while she swung back for another shot.

Hatred flushed through Sunstreaker’s lines; hatred for the stupid mission and the unfairness of it all; hatred for the human who had done so much damage to his frame and ego. The one who had taken his twin from him; fuelling his hatred for humankind in general.

He watched them kill each other in droves, all for the name of religion or peace. He watched them hate each other based on nothing but a different belief system, sexual orientation or colour of their skin. He watched them kill their planet as though finding a new one was an easy cause, and he sat back and listened with an air of disgust as CEOs of corporations would spout hate towards those who could not afford their product, which was created in sweat shops around the world.

He listened to those same CEOs talk about how they would choose to have billions of dollars in profit rather than billions of innocent lives, as though whose lives they spoke of meant nothing.

Cybertron had been like that once. Where corporations had run the world and the lower casts, like himself, were forgotten or abused, left to die in a cruel world. And look where they were now? It was only a matter of time before the humans fell into a civil war that would destroy what little beauty was still here.   

Sunstreaker took all that anger, all that hatred and focused it, narrowing it and directed it all at the small human that dared to strike his frame. He blamed her for everything; his anger too great to be soothed and he didn’t care that she could not be blamed for all the world’s problems.

The Autobot was too angry, too hurt to not focus all his rage on the one person who had dared to stand against him.

Suddenly, Sunstreaker no longer cared about protocol, or about his orders; he had done as requested, remaining hidden in plain sight, but following orders had only made the whole situation worse. Not giving a scrap over the fact that he we was in the middle of a crowded street, in an equally crowded city, surrounded by humans who would undoubtedly take photos and videos of him with their phones, or whatever other devices they had on them, Sunstreaker allowed his rage to take over, and he transformed.

The boy behind Danny screamed as Danny dropped the bat while he made the smooth transition from alt form to his root mode, towering over the pair like a dark guard, angry and cold.

Cobalt optics narrowed at the human below him, ignoring how her heart thudded in her chest and how her tanned skin suddenly went pasty white. Sunstreaker felt her fear roll off her in palatable waves as everything around them suddenly seemed uncomfortably warm.

Yet despite all of this, Danny managed to keep her shoulders back and her spine straight while holding her chin high, and he snarled at her display of confidence, hating her all the more for it. He would see her cower by the end of this yet.

He snarled at her again, his denta bared and his servos clenched into tight fists, and with speed that his large frame wouldn’t suggest he had, Sunstreaker lunged forward. He could hear someone scream behind him, but he ignored them, ignored the gasps and pictures being taken as his fists landed heavily on either side of Danny’s small body.

The red headed femme gasped and flinched back, her small fleshy arms coming pathetically up to protect her head and chest; as if she could have stopped him from killing her. Sunstreaker’s strike to the ground cracked the pavement of the sidewalk, leaving two small dents in the ground on either side of her frail body.

With Danny’s heart pounding so hard in her chest, Sunstreaker honestly though it would burst as she hid her face behind her forearms, her lean body trembling. Heat poured from his frame, venting hotly in super-heated wafts, and crouching over her, he leaned down low, low enough to almost be optic to eye level with her, and a sick kind of glee swept through him at the prospect that she was afraid of him.

He wanted to kill her and had she been Cybertronian, he would have put her through a wall at the _Ark_ long ago.

She would be so easy to kill, to be nothing but a red smear on the pavement that was cracked around her. But the thought of disappointing Optimus or even worse, Prowl, crossed his rage soaked mind, and it was enough to help Sunstreaker back from the killing threshold. It was just enough to stop him from crushing her flat for all she had done to him.

The tank churning thought of disappointing Prowl, as well as the thought of how hurt Sideswipe would be if he killed the stupid little human, made his spark ache. Besides, the Prime had given him this mission and he would not fail.

That, however, did not mean that the Autobot couldn’t scare the living hell out of the human.

“I could kill you right now flesh bag!” he hissed, his anger hiding how his spark felt like it was on fire from embarrassment.

Arms still trembling, Danny managed to lower them enough so that her brown eyes, softened by fear peeked over her pale extremities. “And y-yet you’ve not managed to do it.”

The hitch in her voice made Sunstreaker grin, glad to see her so afraid, but her words made him snarl. Fists tightening, he heaved them up and slammed them back into the ground, the pavement further buckling sending chips of concrete bouncing high enough to lightly rebound off her bony elbows.

Danny swallowed back a cry of fear, only a broken whimper pushing past her throat.

“Don’t tempt me human!” Sunstreaker hissed through gritted denta. “You’ve no idea how much joy it would bring me to see you as nothing more than a splat of red on the road here.”

He heard the human swallow, the street around them unusually quiet as onlookers watched on in shock.

Swallowing again, Sunstreaker watched as Danny lowered her shaking arms to her sides, her small hands balled into tight fists, her knuckles white. “You’re nothing but a jerk. You’re barely an Autobot! A blood thirsty jerk that isn’t fit to wear that insignia. You’re nothing but a fucking monster on a chain.” she hissed up at him, using the rumours that she had heard throughout the _Ark_ to hurt him. 

Sunstreaker tried to not to let the words hit their mark, he had heard them enough back amongst the other Autobot’s, and not even Danny’s words didn’t hold the same weight that say, Tracks’ did. But to be called a monster, to be reminded that he had a certain affinity with violence, and a need to be constantly active, was not a pleasant one. It made his spark ache just a little more, despite her being nothing to him.

“And yet,” he hissed at her, “You continue to mock and antagonize me.” The human managed to keep her defiant glare up at him, with her lips pursed in annoyance and her fists balled tight. “You are nothing to me flesh bag. You will be nothing but dust in a few short years and I will continue to live on. You are nothing but a minor spec in a massive galaxy, a distraction, and when my twin loses interest in you, he won’t bother with you again. And he will, lose interest in you little flesh bag, it’s only a matter of time.”

Hurt flashed through the fear in the large brown orbs, hurt at the concept of being so easily replaced, but those thoughts of insecurities were quickly replaced once again with anger.  “Still,” She managed to snarl softly, keeping her voice steady despite the shaking of her small hands. “Your own brother would currently choose to hang out with me, over you.”

The words made Sunstreaker snarl, his plating crawl and his spark throb. Primus he hated the little glitch, hated her more than he hated any other human being.

Danny’s small head suddenly shook as she took a step back, stepping out from between his clenched fists. Her small hands came up in front of her like small shields and Sunstreaker let her go, unsure if he would be able to stop himself from killing her if he tried to stop her.

Cobalt optics tracked her slow back peddling, and he watched as she bumped into the boy behind her, shoving him aside like he was an object in her way; the teen stuck in suspended animation, shocked at seeing Sunstreaker up close.

“Leave me alone.” She said softly, her brown eyes wide with another fresh bout of fear. “Seriously Sunstreaker. Just leave me the hell alone.”

She backed away further, her brown eyes never leaving his dark cobalt, ignoring the silent stares they got; oblivious to how others around them recorded the goings-on with cameras and phones.

Sunstreaker allowed her to go, knowing that he could catch her at any moment, and more importantly so did she. But the frontliner was sure that had he snatched her from the ground he would have squeezed too hard, breaking something inside that could not be easily repaired.

So he let her go.

With fear bright in her eyes, Danny turned tail and ran back to the mall, leaving the bat and the store employee out in the hot desert sun to face his rage on their own. She disappeared back into the cool, air conditioned mall, fading back into the stunned crowed once more.

With a snarl, rage flushing through his lines, Sunstreaker slowly stood up, standing tall over the fleshlings that gathered around him. Gritting his denta, ignoring how sand and dirt ground into his joints, how his paint job was ruined and how much he hated Danny; Sunstreaker gave another snarl and turned away from the mall. Dropping smoothly into his alt form, the yellow Autobot suddenly peeled out from the four-way stop, a trail of smoke billowing up behind him, determined to find another Lamborghini to reclaim his previous alt form.

He knew would find Danny again, once he calmed down and was sure he would not to kill her, and he would finally take her home. She was afraid of him now, and he believed that the human would come quietly now. That much he was sure of, and it was what he had wanted all along. At least now she knew her place amongst the hierarchy.

As Sunstreaker banked around a corner as hard as he could, cutting off several drivers, he couldn’t help but wonder why his spark twinged unhappily. It was as though he had disappointed Prowl already, and like he really was the monster that everyone thought him to be. Snarling, Sunstreaker pushed his weaker engine harder, driving out into the desert to purge the feelings that bombarded him.

***

Danny ran through the mall as fast as her legs could carry her; her lungs burning, legs feeling as though they were on fire, but she kept running.

Adrenaline made her fast, fear kept her going.

The memory of the look in Sunstreaker’s optics still sent a chill down her spine. She had never seen a single being hate so much, and she had known with every fibre of her being, that he had wanted to _hurt_ her in that moment. She had faced down gangsters, cops and other car thieves, but never in her life had she ever known such hatred.

The man that would have become her cousin’s brother in law, had nearly gutted her like a fish, and even then she had not been this afraid. Not even close to the level of fear she felt now.

Fear bolted through her, leaving her hot and ashamed at feeling such an emotion, and she did the only things she could; running fast and as hard in the opposite direction from the angered Autobot, as she could.  

Danny kept running until someone large and bulky clipped her shoulder and with a startled gasp, the women spun as she fell, landing awkwardly and heavily onto one side.  She winced when her elbow bounced off the hard ground and her knee twisted painfully under her. Glaring up at the man that knocked her down, Danny fought back the tears that threatened to pool; she despised crying, and she’d be damned if she was going to do it now!

But it was hard, much harder not to than she wanted to admit after her stare down with a furious Sunstreaker, coupled with exhaustion from days of non-stop work. She still couldn’t figure out what had possessed her to steal the baseball bat and knock off his passenger side mirror. 

It had been impulsive and stupid, and now she had paid the price for that.

The tall, blond man with blue eyes glared down at her, light eyes narrowed in disdain on her thin form. He snorted at her as Danny gathered herself quickly, forcing back the tears and emotion that threatened to swell, and with a hard snort, the man left her on the ground as he quickly walked away.

Wincing, Danny pulled herself to her feet, rubbing at her elbow, and taking a deep breath she forced herself to calm down, before running deeper into the mall and away from the furious Autobot that lay in wait outside.

***

Starscream lay on his back, wings tight to his frame and pinned to his berth as he squirmed on the slab of metal. The soft pad that was supposed to offer comfort and support, simply did not that night. Not when lust was buzzing through his lines, his spike twitching in his housing, hard and wanting, his valve wet and tingling with need.

Thundercracker made a small noise in the back of his throat, arm curling tighter around Skywarp in the berth across from where Starscream lay, his lieutenant so deep in recharge that he didn’t feel Starscream’s own lust through the bond.

Skywarp did not surprise him nearly as much, the teleporter softly snoring into his mate’s armour.

Starscream sighed, forcing himself to focus on the ceiling above him as he tried to force his sudden physical need away. His trine had already offered themselves to him, and he knew that they would be happy to help him work off his steam, but that just seemed wrong to the seeker.

They didn’t really want him in that way, or anything more than the brother they needed, so to ask for anything more than the support they already gave him seemed so wrong when he knew they didn’t want him like they wanted each other.

Besides, Starscream had argued with himself, they were only beginning to get to know one another again, finally able to love and care openly amongst the Autobots, and to try and take advantage now would only dismantle everything they had worked towards, with each other and himself.

Starscream squirmed again, the wetness between his thighs growing uncomfortable, his spike hot. Just because he had no intention of bedding his trine mates did not mean he didn’t have his own needs; and the way his trine mates fragged each other into every solid surface was not helping his needs.

As much as they tried to close him off when they were being intimate with one another, Starscream still caught the feelings they had towards each other, their arousal, and it served only to ramp his own want higher.

Snarling, the tri-coloured seeker rolled over, his back to his trine mates, his thighs rubbing together in a hope to gain some relief, only to become frustrated when it did nothing to help.  Snarling, the Decepticon rolled over again, frustration level rising with his need of physical attention.

He needed release, any sort of release, his hard, too hot spike nosing at his closed cover. Glancing over at his recharging trine mates, Starscream heaved a sigh. If he did anything, he would surly wake one or both of them, and the awkward conversation that would certainly follow was not one the trine leader was eager to partake in.

He knew his trine meant well, they really did, but some days he wished his had his own quarters again or at the very least a private wash rack.

Heaving an exhausted sigh, Starscream quietly sat up and crawled from his berth. If his temporary quarters couldn’t offer him some kind of reprieve from his needs, he would find a space that would suit him.

Padding quietly from the room, the Ariel commander made no noise, the door swishing open, allowing Starscream to make good his escape. The halls were dark as most of the _Ark_ were in recharge, only those still on night duty, awake and guarding the base.

The dim emergency lights from above flickered lightly off his brightly coloured armour, casting faint shadows along the bright orange walls. Moving quickly, Starscream cut through the _Ark_ to the first set of public wash racks, his steps oddly loud in the silent halls.

The seeker tried to not shift his hips as he walked, tried not to grind his spike against his damn panel, and tried to ignore how _good_ it would feel to have a spike thrusting hard into…

Starscream cringed and quickly shut down that line of though; it only served to make his spike grow harder and the dampness between his thighs to increase.

Frame humming with tension, Starscream stiffly rounded the corner, arms rigid at his sides and his hips had lost their smooth motion. He was close, so close to his destination. All he had to do was walk down the hall, and he’d be able to slip inside and gain his release.

He was so close…

Disappointment flared bright and hot through his wired frame, drawing a groan of distress right from the centre of his chest as Sideswipe came from the other end of the hall. The frontliner’s helm was down, shoulders hunched and his usually bright blue optics dim, sad even.

The crimson hellion didn’t even notice Starscream as he turned into the wash rack, his form slumped as he disappeared into the room. Starscream slowed to a stop, glowering at the closed door.  He knew that Sideswipe was missing his twin, and that Cliffjumper and even Brawn were giving him and Skywarp a hard time, so understood that the front liner likely needed time to unwind and relax.

That being said, it didn’t mean Starscream wanted to share a wash rack with him during his particular need. Heaving a tired sigh, the seeker felt his wings droop in frustration as he glared at the door to the wash racks, blaming all his problems on the inanimate object.   

He could walk down to the other wash racks, the ones at the far end of the base. The one’s the mini bots like to use. Starscream heaved a sigh, detesting the idea of having to wander down to the other end of the _Ark_ for release. But the tightness and heat from between his thighs wouldn’t dissipate, making the seeker squirm uncomfortably as he stood stock still in the abandoned hall.

Crimson optics slid down the hallway, falling onto the entrance to one of the many storage closets that were dotted around the _Ark_ , and it gave Starscream a moment of pause. A storage closet, in the middle of the night, _with no one else around_.

The seeker bit his lower lip, considering his option. The burning between his legs did not lessen, too many days of Thundercracker and Skywarp’s sexual adventures playing havoc on his own systems. A metal brow rose at the storage closest before he glanced around the empty hall way.

Ensuring that no one else was around. Crimson optics darted up to one of the many cameras, and Starscream was in no doubt that Red Alert watching his every move, as he had been since he entered the Autobot strong hold.

Starscream bit his bottom lip once again, sharp denta piercing the delicate silicone as his optics fell back to the storage closet. Red Alert would know he was up to something, but it had to be worth the risk.

Forcing his shoulders to loosen, the seeker’s wings swept back as his spinal struts straightened. Walking with purpose, focused straight ahead, Starscream marched to the supply closet, his insides twisting and knotting in a mixture of excitement and anxiety. Not quite believing what he was about to do. 

He walked to the closet door, passing through it easily as it opened before him, and he did not falter as he strode through and into the room, the door hissing shut quietly behind him. The seeker paused for a moment, anticipation taking over any reservation he once had.

His servos wrung for a moment as he glanced around the supply closet; boxes of unused data pads stacked carefully on shelves, along with other items that the Prime deemed necessary.  

Nerves flushed through his lines for a moment, exhilaration building, knowing he could easily be caught. The thrill of that a surprise, but a surprise that Starscream found he relished. He was really going to do this, in an Autobot supply closet.

Suddenly stupidly giddy, Starscream crossed the small room, carefully stepping between two high shelves that were full of unopened boxes, creating sharp shadows in the dim light that cast over his bright plating.

Back to the wall, Starscream slid down to the floor, wings folded in tight so that he could fit easily in the small space. For a moment, a brief moment, fear flushed through Starscream’s systems, fear that blasted through his lust and need, and caused him to shake.

Being in such a small space, confined, with his wings trapped was far too much like being back in The Hole back on the _Nemesis_. It reminded him of being trapped, of being flightless and hurt, knowing that his trine could be harmed at the drop of a cred whilst he was helpless to stop it.

Lean legs straightened out before him, servos folded in his lap, Starscream offlined his optics and took a deep breath. He was not in The Hole, he was far from Megatron and his cruel ways. He could leave this room at any moment, his movement only restricted by his own choice.

The fear faded and lust slowly moved back into its place again, quickening at the thoughts of his trine mates and the things they had been up to in the last few days. Their servos exploring one another’s frames, digits dipping into transformation seams, slowly teasing and building each other up.

It was enough to make Starscream moan in appreciation, wondering what it would feel like to have Thundercracker’s dark servos run down his thigh. White knees drew to his chest and fell wide, dark blue servos lightly teasing at his own transformation seams along his pelvic span.

It drew a groan from the trine leader, and the image of Skywarp’s own digits rubbing at his interface panel filled the tri-coloured seeker’s helm. As Starscream’s digits dipped into the transformation seam that ran along his hip, digits tugging roughly at clusters of wire and sensors, his other servo rubbed hard at his hot interface panel. A soft sigh brushed passed Starscream’s lips as he relaxed a little further against the wall, legs spreading wider to his wandering servos.

Then the thought of Optimus Prime’s servo wrapping tightly around his hot, hot spike made all his panels slide open, causing him abandon transformation seams as his servo fisted around his already pressurized spike, and the digits of his other servo softly brush his already moist valve.

Starscream jerked back for a moment, realising that he had just had a fantasy about the Prime, and he wondered where in the Pits that had come from.

But…but there was just something undeniably _hot_ about the idea of the cool, collected reserved Prime losing it while he fragged him into this wall. The fantasy made Starscream grin into the dark, his thumb running along the head of his spike in a circle, spreading transfluid around his weeping slit.

Helm falling back against the wall with a sigh, Starscream pictured the Prime kneeling between his spread knees, his massive blue servo gently grasping his hard length, gently manipulating it, touching it. Tension washed from Starscream in waves, leaving him feeling relaxed, strutless, as he tightened his grip and began to move his servo up and down.

Dark blue digits brushed once more at his slick entrance before two slid easily inside, teasing at the clusters of sensor nodes. The thought of the Prime, so large, so _powerful_ , yet unbelievably gentle, hovering over his limp frame made Starscream’s cooling fans come online and coolant flush his systems. 

The dark blue fist pumped over his straining spike, twisting and tugging on it hard, his need growing as the fantasy took over Starscream’s processor. The seeker moaned softly as he now imagined Optimus Prime’s cobalt servo wrapped around his ridged spike, pumping him hard and fast, the large body leaning protectively over his own.

A third digit was added to the two inside, searching out just the right spot, causing bright blue lubricants to leak from his valve, pooling on the floor after streaking down his spread thighs. A soft moan brushed past Starscream’s soft lips, the Prime’s name a breathy whisper as he squeezed hard.

Digits spread wide, buried deep inside his own body, helm thrown back, Starscream gasped as his thumb circled his weeping spike. Hot pleasure spread throughout his taut frame, the need of release pooling low in his belly, the pressure building, rocketing higher.

The seeker groaned, half words pouring from his mouth as his too hot frame struggled to remain cool in the tight space of the storage closet. It had been so long since he had self-serviced, longer still since he had truly enjoyed it, the constant fear of Megatron keeping his own needs at bay.

But with the thought of the Prime over him, surrounding him, inside him, drove Starscream’s desire higher, his burning need to an unspeakable place. He was groaning and panting before he knew it, so close to oblivion he could nearly taste it. He could feel it in his flickering EM, the way blue electricity crackled across his straining frame and the sudden tightness in his belly. 

 

Starscream moaned loud and low, his EM flaring hard now, the charge building deep from his circuits as his frame shuddered and shook uncontrollably. He was so close and the seeker bit his bottom lip hard as he pumped himself, squeezing and tugging in even pulls. The pleasure was blinding, burning through him like the sweetest of high grades.  

The door to the storage closet suddenly opened with a too loud _swoosh_ , light from the now lit hall flooding the darker room, effectively destroying the fantasy that Starscream had worked so hard to create. 

He froze, frame going stone still with his digits buried deep in his valve, his servo clenched around his extended spike, the flanges flared wide in a desperate attempt to cool his burning appendage.

The only thing that moved was Starscream’s optics as he dimmed them, tracking Optimus Prime as he quietly walked into the storage closet. Starscream felt his spark freeze and his fuel pump sputter as he silently panicked. 

The mech he had just been fantasizing about, in detail, had just walked into the storage closet.

Oblivious to company, the Prime walked in, holding a data pad in his servo, light blue optics focused on whatever information the data pad held.

Starscream felt a different kind of heat buildup from his chest, spreading up his neck and into his cheeks as embarrassment spread through him. The lust however, did not die. If anything it ramped higher, the energy in his circuits rushing around his frame, his valve clenching tighter around his probing digits.

The walls of his valve rippled and clenched, trying to draw his wriggling digits a little deeper. Starscream swallowed as he tracked Optimus Prime cross the closet to one of the tall shelves, optics never leaving his data pad. The thought of being caught self-servicing by the Prime, to his image even, only turned Starscream on more, despite the embarrassment that fought to overtake the want that was tight in his belly.

Optimus glanced up as his servo disappeared into a box, fishing for another data pad. The large mech…and Starscream’s mind wondered if that applied to all aspects of the Prime before becoming silently horrified that he had even thought that…then tucked the empty data pad under his arm, his optics dropping back to the pad he was reading as he turned about face, slowly walking back to the door.

Starscream fought back the moan, his digits now circling his clenching valve and he silently prayed that the Prime wouldn’t see him.

Optimus walked by him, and was only a few steps from the door when he paused. He suddenly looked up, staring at the door, confusion so clear in his EM. He took a step back, nearing Starscream once again and the Prime blinked once more at the door, before his helm slowly turned towards the seeker.

Starscream bit his lower lip as the Prime’s optics widened in shock, those bright blue orbs slowly dipping down to his hard spike with his fist clamped around it, squeezing. His digits still vibrating within his own body, Starscream swallowed hard, and reluctantly removed them from his clenching, wet valve.

Optimus found himself frozen for a moment, watching the handsome seeker slowly remove his digits, a trickle of lubricant, bright blue, dripping down to the floor. It was the Prime’s turn to swallow hard, watching the erotic sight before him, optics pinned on the visible pliable metal between the seeker’s thighs.

Clearing his throat, mortification still not knocking the lust from Starscream’s frame, not when he could feel the Prime’s own growing need in his energy field as he slowly closed his legs, shifted to hide himself. Only then could Optimus shake himself from his frozen state, looking away to give the tri-coloured seeker a moment of privacy. It took more effort than Optimus would have liked to admit to look away from the beautiful seeker, caught in a moment of pleasure.

“Ah…my apologies Starscream.” The Prime cleared his throat, sure he was more horrified about the situation than Starscream was. “But I am sure there are better places for you to…to do that.”

Reluctantly, Starscream tucked his spike back into its housing, the cover of his valve slipping closed before he stood. The lubrication leaked down his thighs, bright on his white armour as he leaned back against the wall behind him.

“Yes well. I have two trine mates who are determined to frag each other through every single flat surface on the base, and no private place to hide out. I did the best I could.” The seeker grumbled, squirming uncomfortably, his empty valve rippling at nothing.

Optimus’ blue optics drifted back to the needy seeker, and Starscream noticed how he looked at anything but the blue lubrication on those pretty white thighs. The seeker grinned inwardly, preening silently at the fact that he still had it, could still make another mech want him.   

His wings flicked under the Prime’s soft gaze, so different from Megatron’s but no less intense and just as powerful. The steadfast but soft gaze only further ramped up Starscream’s arousal, and he was sure that the Prime must have seen it in the way he shifted while his frame trembled uncontrollably, and surely he felt it in the way his EM flickered wildly.

Blue helm ducking, almost as though he was embarrassed, endearing Starscream all the more, Optimus cleared his throat. “I…I have a private wash rack, if you’d like to use it Starscream.”

The seeker blinked at the larger grounder, still not quite accustomed to being helped. It was something that Starscream had not had in a very long time, someone being considerate of his own needs, and it only made him want the Prime all the more.

The seeker quickly stifled that line of thought, disregarded it completely. He didn’t need to be lusting after the Prime like a youngling with their first adult upgrade. It wouldn’t work anyhow, and it was shameful to think otherwise. The Prime had a ship full of noble Autobots who would gladly take his place in the Prime’s berth, and the seeker couldn’t see what the Prime would possibly want with someone like him.

He was going to thank Prime and say no, and go to find someplace quite where he could finish his lust driven need in peace. But before Starscream could string together an appropriate response, the appropriate apology, his mouth began speaking before his mind could catch up. “I would greatly appreciate that Prime.” He husked, his voice pitched low so that it rumbled softly, pleasantly; he usually hated the sound of his voice. It had taken mortar damage eons ago and had never really had been properly repaired, leaving him with a screechy rasp. 

Had…had he just said that, in that tone of voice? What the frag was wrong with him!?

The Prime’s optics brightened in delight, glad that he could help the seeker, even in something as embarrassing as this. He might feel differently, Starscream thought to himself, if he knew what he had been fantasising about.

“Just follow me Starscream, you are more than welcome to use my wash rack.” Optimus nodded, no longer finding the whole thing as mortifying as he should have, his coding as a Prime demanding that something be done at once to ease the seeker’s discomfort.

Shifting once more, lust driving his sensibilities from his helm, Starscream nodded, his need for release easing away his own embarrassment at the situation. “Lead on then Prime.”

Optimus led the hot, needy seeker, one who could have been easily taken advantage of, and Megatron surely would have, to his personal wash rack. The large Autobot had not touched him or even leered at him as they fled to the safety of his quarters.

Starscream’s defensive systems flared uncomfortably, for only a moment, at the thought of being in his current state, so vulnerable with the large Autobot. But as always, Optimus rose to the occasion to remind Starscream that so long as Optimus was Prime, compassion would rule the _Ark_.

His HUD blinked as a message came through, a series of numbers, an access code. “That’s the code for my wash rack, by all means lock the door and change the code while you’re in there. I only request that you change it back when you are done.”    

Starscream jerked in surprise, the Autobot’s kindness so foreign to the Decepticon, that kindness causing his empty valve to clench, surprising the seeker that something so small, so pathetic, could affect him so. The black helm nodded, Starscream’s throat working as he swallowed. “Thanks.” He grunted awkwardly.

The semi truck’s frame stiffened for a moment as he nodded, leading the seeker into his quarters and the private on-suit.

Before Starscream could even truly understand what had just occurred, he was locked, perfectly safe within the Prime’s wash racks, the only one who currently had the code was himself. Within moments, the warm cleanser was washing over his tense frame softly, loosening all the strain he carried through his shoulders and lower back.

Groaning, relishing in the feeling of the soft pitter patter of the warm liquid over his frame, Starscream leaned forward, pressing his forearm against the cool metal of the wall, pressing his fore-helm against his too warm arm, before letting his spike slide out into his servo, still hard, the plating flared wide. Moaning, Starscream squeezed himself, running his thumb over his hot tip before he began pumping himself again, tugging his spike in even, measured pulls.

He gasped as his hips bucked against his servo, his cheek plating grinding against the back of the other, his lips parted in a silent scream. The thought of Optimus Prime, pressing against his back as he reached around him, that large, cobalt servo clenching at his spike.

Starscream let himself go, allowed himself to moan the Prime’s name, his voice low and husky, almost soft as he pumped. The heat coiled tight in his belly, his thighs trembling while lubrication pooled behind his soaking array. Energon rushed to his loins, causing him gasp and grind his hips against his servo.

Release came quickly for the seeker, and he overloaded with a guttural cry, spraying three spurts of silvery transfluid onto the wall of the pristine wash rack. Crimson optics off line and hidden, Starscream buried his face into his elbow and panted roughly into his arm, plump bottom lip catching between pointed canine denta.

He remained as he was a moment longer before his valve cover slipped open, the bright blue lubrication running down his thigh, only to be washed partially away from the soft cleanser that rained over his still wired frame. The thought of the Prime was still clear in his processor, and Starscream’s digits began to trace the rim of his valve, slowly teasing the charge back into a heightened state.       

***

Optimus Prime tried to concentrate on the report that Prowl had sent to him, the one he deemed important; the one regarding the morale of his mechs since the seekers had come to stay on the _Ark_.

It was, in essence, an important document; if the Autobots and Decepticons could not live together, they would not fight together, and the large Autobot was still waiting to hear from Starscream on his decision to train the young fliers on base.

Buckling down, he tried desperately to focus on the data pad at servo, forcing himself to read the words written there and absorb their importance. But despite his effort, all the Prime could think of was that trickle of blue lubrication slowly winding down Starscream’s beautiful white thigh.    

Then there were those pretty white thighs that were likely trembling and shaking in the wash rack, _his_ personal wash rack, right now. Optimus had no illusions as to what was happening in there, and knew exactly what Starscream was doing.

Shame and guilt for entertaining those thoughts ate at Optimus. Not only because he thought them, but because they turned him on. The thought of those delicate white wings trembling while his thighs shuddered, as Starscream’s servo fisted around himself…

Optimus jammed his optics shut, the protective lids clamping together so tightly that he saw little stars as he took a deep vent in order to calm himself. His fans suddenly kicked on, much to his mortification, and his engine rumbled hotly under his hood.

The Decepticon, Optimus knew, would never want someone like him. They had spent far too much time trying to kill each other for something like that to happen between them, and no doubt Starscream would be just as mortified by his thoughts as he was.

Optimus couldn’t, wouldn’t, take advantage of the seeker. Not in his vulnerable state; wouldn’t even if Starscream wasn’t caught in a weak moment of need. How would anyone see anything that he could have done, as anything _but_ taking advantage, or an abuse of power?

It would make him as bad as Megatron.

Venting a sigh, Optimus pushed those thoughts away, doubling his efforts to focus on Prowl’s report; the dull and boring report, full of equally dull and boring facts.  Nothing unusual or sexual there. Safe.

Yet Optimus couldn’t help but be overly conscious to the seeker in his shower. Of how the cleanser would be slicing through the bright lubrication on his thighs, while sliding slowly down the wide expansion of his pretty white wings.

Optics slipping shut again, Optimus Prime took a deep vent, trying to relax his tense frame and push those thoughts away. Then the shower shut off suddenly, perking the semi’s interest, the thought of the beautiful seeker standing under the drier, dark helm canted to the side, face set in pleasure, the strong lean body open and relaxed under the warm air.

Would he moan, Optimus suddenly wondered to himself, if he ran his digits along the inside of his pectoral vent?  

Servos clenched tightly around the data pad, the glass of the pad cracking from the pressure as Optimus scolded himself. He needed to purge those thoughts before Starscream came from the wash rack, and he embarrassed himself.

Optimus heard the door open, followed by Starscream’s even, confident sounding steps nearing, but the Prime couldn’t bring himself to turn around and look at the seeker just yet. He needed to get rid of those thoughts and ignore his spike nudging gently against his closed panel.

He heard the Decepticon clear his throat, drawing the Prime’s attention, and Optimus did his best to not show Starscream how much seeing him vulnerable and so open had affected him as he placed the broken data pad face down on the table. Servos clasped together, the Prime finally turned to face the seeker as Starscream slowly walked around the desk, overly aware of the blue optics that followed him.

For a moment the Prime and the seeker just stared at each other, ruby optics watching the light blue in the awkward silence between them.

Starscream looked away first, optics tipping to the ground in a sign of submission, knowing he was nothing next to the Prime. Optimus felt an unexpected pang. He wanted to see that defiant light in the seeker’s optics more often, wanted to hear the sass he was so well known for, not this submission, and he wanted Starscream to know that he and his trine were safe within the confines of the _Ark_.

He just wanted the seeker.

Again, Optimus pushed those thoughts away as he was forced to override his fans from snapping on line, all the while somehow still managing to speak with a steady voice. “I hope the showers were accommodating.”

Ruby optics picked back up and the Decepticon’s shoulders loosened. “They were adequate.” He shrugged.

Something warm fluttered through Optimus’ spark, but he fought it. “I am glad to hear that.” A smile graced softly at his hidden lips, his blue optics brightening and twinkling. “If you ever, ah, require to borrow it again, you are by all means welcome to.”

Starscream’s optics brightened for a moment in surprise, Megaton would have never allowed Starscream to use his own personal wash racks had he needed them. Heat, as embarrassment spread, flushed through Starscream’s cheeks, and not for the first time he was glad that Optimus was unable to see the blush.

“I…yes, thank you.” Starscream muttered, wondering where all his cavalier and smooth talking had gone in the face of the happy blue optics.

The thought of those optics darkening in lust flashed through Starscream’s mind, sending the heat crawling further along Starscream’s plating.  Clearing his throat once again, Starscream glanced away and forced himself to not fidget, and not think about dark blue servos wrapping around his spike.

“I’ve thought about your proposition.” He said quickly, a change of subject in a safe direction, catching the Prime’s attention completely. “I will train your baby jets and take the place of Ariel commander.” The seeker paused, choosing his words carefully. “And I will train Silverbolt to take my place.”

The blue helm canted, reminding Starscream of a dog examining something novel to its environment. “I wouldn’t want you replaced Starscream. You have much more experience than Silverbolt, and even he knows it.”

Ruby optic softened for a moment as he regarded the Prime. “I cannot stay hidden away here forever Prime.  I also know that I have angered Megatron to the point of no forgiveness this time, and he will try and kill me for my actions.” The seeker shrugged. “I have accepted my fate. The most I can do is ensure that there is someone able to replace me.”

For a moment, the Prime just sat behind his desk, staring blankly at the seeker. “Starscream, I will not let him hurt you.” 

A small smile flickered at the corners of Starscream’s mouth, a slight upturn of his lips. “You cannot save me Prime. All I can do is to ensure that my trine is safe, and that your baby jets won’t die by crashing into the earth.”

Something shifted within the Prime, something dark and protective. The bright blue optics darkened, hardening with an angry sheen. “He will not hurt you again.”

The conviction in the Prime’s words caused Starscream shudder, and the thought of the Prime pinning him down or over that desk flickered through his mind. Starscream knew he had to flee before he said something stupid.

“I thank you Prime, but I should return to my own quarters.” The dark helm bobbed in a half bow, a sign of respect. “I will begin training the baby jets in the morning.”

The Prime nodded, swallowing his anger and hatred towards Megatron. “I wish you a pleasant night Starscream.”

The seeker nodded once more before he did, in fact, flee the Prime’s office. Optimus watched him go, the lust he felt for the Decepticon long gone, his processor now reeling with ways to keep the pretty seeker safe.

**TBC…**


	6. Bonding Experience

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thundercracker knows he screwed up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Important Information  
> “Blah” Speaking  
> ::Blah:: comm. link  
> ‘Blah’ bonded speech  
> ‘Blah’ thinking
> 
> Astrosecond- 2.5 earth Seconds  
> Klik- 150 earth seconds/ 2.5 earth Minutes  
> Orn- 150 earth minutes/ 2.5 earth Hours  
> Joor- 60 earth hours/2.5 earth Days  
> Metacycle- 17.5 earth days/2.5 earth Weeks  
> Vorn- 10 earth weeks/2.5 earth months  
> Stellercycle-30 earth months/2.5 years  
> Breem-slang for a moment/minute.  
> Night Cycle: star down to star up  
> Day Cycle: Star up to star down
> 
> Authors Note: Oh hey look! I updated! Whoot whoot! :D
> 
> Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter, hope you enjoy the next one. 
> 
> Thank you to Darkness_Rising for doing the beta work on this chapter and helping me figure out all the niggly bits ;) 
> 
> Disclaimer: I own only my OC’s, nothing else.

Starscream stood, arms crossed over his chest as he watched his trine mates move through their basic manoeuvres, the same manoeuvers that they had been practicing since they were younglings  to ensure they were perfect; manoeuvers that had saved their lives on more than one occasion.

Behind him, the Aerialbots stared up at his trine mates in pure awe, watching them move easily through their routine, the dips and dives, the turns and barrel rolls; the same actions that the Aerialbots were capable of doing, but had yet to have a proper teacher.

Thundercracker flew overhead, his sonic boom causing the younglings to flinch and duck. Amusement flowed over the trine bonds to Starscream and the trine leader could practically hear the dark, rich chuckle.

The trine leader kept his own amusement from his face as he spun on his thruster to face the younglings, his expression cross and firm, ruby optics narrowed as he regarded the young gestalt. He drew himself straighter, his wings swept back and high, feeling like a commander for the first time in far too long.

“You lot.” He spat, “are at a huge disadvantage.” Five sets of blue optics, all varying in shade, turned towards him, wide in shock. He couldn’t be their friend, they couldn’t afford him to be their friend. They needed a commander, a proper one at that, if they hoped to survive.

He would be a hard aft, only because they needed him to be; the Prime let them get away with far too much. A thought, brief and sudden, flashed through Starscream’s mind, the thought of cobalt servos firm at his hips, digits teasing his plating…

With a snarl, Starscream pushed that thought away, focusing on the younglings before him, and their bright optic-ed innocence.

“You are newsparks, created from Vector Sigma, that were shoved into adult frames. You were created out of necessity and need.” Five sets of wings drooped while five sets of blue optics fell to the ground at their feet.

The fact they were created sparks, and not bred, like most Cybertronians was a constant mark on the younglings, always there to remind them that they were so much _different_ from the others. It sent a sharp throb to Starscream’s spark as he remembered a time when Vector Sigma was considered a sacred place; the sparks that were born there considered just as special as the sparks bred between two others. 

“How you were created matters little to me.” The older seeker spat, their optics still down cast and…sad.  Rejected even. “What does matter is the training you have, or rather, what little training you have had. By the time Skywarp and Thundercracker where your spark age, they had already mastered the basics of flight!”

The Aerialbots flinched, shoulders hunched, the looks on their faces turning to misery. “And that is what everyone here has forgotten! Adult frames you may have, but you still have a youngling’s processor, a youngling’s mentality.”

He glanced at the five dejected fliers, all ready for teaching, for moulding. Starscream would ensure their survival through the only way he knew how; he would teach them to defend themselves, teach them to fly properly. Teach them to kill. 

“You have yet to learn the basics, and that’s where we are going to start. Everyone assumes you are just born with the knowledge of flight, but there is more to it than just instincts, learning is just as important.”

His voice softened, if only a little. “And I am going to teach you all I know. It will not be easy. It will be a lot of hard work.” Five sets of optics drew up once more. “But if you wish to survive to the end of the war, to live more than just this,” a dark blue servo waved around them as the other two seekers circled overhead. “Then you will do as I say, when I say. Understood?”

The Aerialbots glanced around, nodding softly, confused.

Starscream rolled his optics, fighting the sigh. “Is that understood!?” he barked.

The young gestalt jerked back in surprise at his tone, but caught on quick enough. They had seen enough human movies to know how to respond. “YES SIR!”

“Better.” Starscream nodded. “When we are training, you _will_ refer to me as either commander or sir. Understood?”

They drew up a little taller, backs a little straighter. “Yes sir!” echoed back at him, the dejection bleeding away to bright enthusiasm.

The trine leader nodded again. “As I said, my trine mates, and myself for that matter, have eons of experience over you. Whereas you came into this world expected to know what you are doing, we were taught by the great fliers of Vos.”    

He paused as he looked over them, a sudden pang that they would never see his home city, or hear the Vosian dialect. “We will teach you all we can, as we were taught. Meaning we will begin with the very basics.”

An all-white arm and servo suddenly shot into the air, almost waving around as though Starscream could not see the limb. Blinking at it for a moment, fighting down his exasperation, the trine leader nodded to the youngling. “What is it Fireflight?”

“Oh! Um…Starscream,” the trine leader raised a brown and frowned at the youngling. The while helm dropped again. “Right! Sorry. Umm…Sir. Will…will you teach us to speak Vosian? We can’t find the language on any data cards on the _Ark…_ ”

Starscream found himself surprised by the request as Fireflight trailed off, baby blue optics dipping down. The seeker considered for a moment the implications behind that fact that the baby jets had tried to look into their own background.

“I am…not surprised that you were unable to find such information. Data on Vos became hard to track down after Sentinel Prime ordered the city to be obliterated.”

Blue optics blinked. “Obliterated?” Silverbolt asked, suddenly looking uncomfortable.

Ruby optics flashed, rage coming easily. “Has Prime not taught you what his predecessor did!?” 

The gestalt flinched back from the seeker’s angry words. It was the gestalt leader who stood a little taller, taking the heat for his brothers to answer the seething seeker. “No one has had the time to teach us history. And we…don’t have the time to go digging through the old archives.”

“And it’s boring.” Slingshot added, looking almost sulky.

Starscream glared. “Those who do not know history are doomed to repeat it.” He spat, causing the youngling to pout but back down.

The trine leader looked at them again, seeing them as a whole, as a group of younglings and not adults. “Do any of you know what happened to Praxus?” They all shook their helms no. “What about Tyger Pax? Or Kaon? Any of the major cities that fell?”

Five helms shook no. Starscream frowned and was unable to stifle the sigh while his trine mates continued doing lazy loop-de-loops overhead. “Very well. I will speak to your other commanders and set up history lessons for the lot of you.”

Slingshot groaned and slouched, drawing Starscream’s narrowed gaze. “And missing these lessons will be considered missing training, and punishment will be doled out accordingly.”

The young flier slouched, but said no more. Satisfied that Slingshot would not say anything further, Starscream’s ruby gaze fixed on Fireflight, making the jet almost squeak. “And yes, Fireflight. I will teach you to speak Vosian.”

The amount of delight on the others face brought a measure of happiness to Starscream; not that he allowed the youngling to see it. “Right. Let’s see what kind of flying you lot can manage!”

Again, they straightened, all but the commander’s optics brightening with excitement as the warm air gusting around them, kicked up dust. “Get into the air with Thundercracker and Skywarp! Let’s see what you lot can do!”

The younglings laughed and giggled as they launched themselves into the air, transforming smoothly, shooting straight up to reach the seekers; Silverbolt taking his time, Starscream not quite believing a flier had a fear of heights. 

Feeling confident, optimistic, for the first time in eons, Starscream watched from the ground as the gestalt quickly organized themselves into a messy sort of flight pattern. The trine leader sighed.

This was going to be much more difficult than he had originally thought. 

***

Wincing in pain, Thundercracker tried to ignore the uncomfortable sensation of having a rather large tree branch shoved up his thruster, catching on the gears inside. The sensation of having bark and dirt caught in his wings, one of his ailerons was stuck, caked with dirt and debris and his once shiny blue armour was dull, dented and dirty.

The seeker was sucking on his denta, his lip plates pursed in annoyance as he struggled to hold his glossa. His servos clenched at his sides, EM flickering with annoyance, tinged with anger; anger he kept bottled for the sake of the mech who trailed behind him.

The cause of his dishevelled look, his chipped and scratched paint, dented armour, and the fact that he had a tree branched shoved uncomfortably up a thruster, was trailing silently behind him, and Thundercracker tried oh so hard to not snap at the youngling behind him.

He scowled, risking a glance over a shoulder vent as Fireflight trailed quietly behind, his own white paint job chipped and his plating slightly torn. Tree branches stuck out from his shoulder joints and wings, haloing around his slight frame like fur.

His light blue optics were downcast and full of shame, white servos fluttering in front of his body, fidgeting while digits interlacing and twisting in small knots. A split lower lip was caught between sharp canine denta as the youngling chewed on it.

The light silicon of his face was flushed a light purplish-pink from embarrassment, the hot energon rushing to the area along his cheeks; his mortification clear in his EM field, horrified that he had crashed, failed, so terribly in front of the older, experienced seekers.

Worse yet, when Fireflight had gone into that too steep dive, had been unable to pull out from it, it had been Thundercracker who had reacted and dove after him, seeing what was about to occur and putting himself at risk.

It had been the larger blue mech who had ordered him to transform into root mode, and it had been Thundercracker’s quick thinking and stronger frame that had saved Fireflight from face plating into the Earth. The blue hued Seeker had caught the Aerialbot as he fell, wrapping thick arms around him and flipping them so that they fell pedes first. 

Thundercracker had fired his thrusters at full capacity, slowing their decent enough to not kill themselves, but not enough so that they didn’t slam into the side of the mountain. Skywarp, sensing his mate was fine despite the landing, had burst into peals of laughter, finding the whole thing hilarious, only adding to the youngling’s mortification.

Taking a deep vent, Thundercracker paused in his powerful stride, allowing Fireflight to catch up, and walk next to him. The younger flier kept his helm ducked, wings wilted behind him in an attempt to look smaller than he was, his awkward EM rolling in humiliation.

“Look.” Thundercracker tried, managing to keep his tone smooth, edging onto comfort, but unable to fully meet it. “We all crash once in a while.”

The little Aerialbot hunched further, face burning. “Not everyone gets distracted by birds.” He muttered.

Thundercracker sighed, his wings flicking. “This is true.” He muttered back.

“Shouldn’t be a flyer.” Fireflight muttered, face sad, optics starting to water. “Never do anything right.”

The seeker sighed, remembering that when Skywarp was first starting to learn to fly, he had often said similar things. “Look,” Thundercracker said, tone firm, “We all fuck up. And these things take time, and this was your first day of training.”

Fireflight glanced up, fat tears welling and Thundercracker willed them not to fall. He never did have the spark to watch a sparkling cry. “But I’m terrible.”

Then it happened, a single fat tear slid down the youngling’s cheek, rolling over the smooth silicone, bottom lip trembling. Thundercracker sighed, catching Fireflight’s arm, spinning him into a full embrace, remembering the times Lucy had sobbed into his armour. 

The Autobot flyer sobbed suddenly, vents hitching as he babbled, venting how he was going to get his gestalt killed, how he would let Optimus and Starscream down. How he was never good enough.

Thundercracker cringed, hating seeing sparkling’s cry and held the Autobot a little tighter. “Listen.” He said firmly, his tone cold despite the comfort he provided. “No one is perfect their first time out. And remember, you give the Stunticons a hard time, and you’re part of Superion. You are not nearly as terrible as you think you are.”

Fireflight’s vents hitched, his servos shaking. “But I get distracted by _birds!_ ”

The blue hued seeker sighed, resting his chin on top the youngling’s helm. “I know.” Fireflight stifled a sob, wings shuddering at his back. “But you know what you are doing wrong. And knowing what you are doing wrong is the first step of getting it right.”

The youngling paused, watery optics glancing up at him, hope suddenly hidden behind the tears. “Really?”

Nodding, Thundercracker drew slightly away, catching the youngling’s optics. “Really. Now stop this crying. You are not the first to crash, and you will not be the last.”

Fireflight let go of him, scrubbing at his optics, a small smile gracing his pale features. “But you never crash.”

Thundercracker turned, even strides carrying him down the hall they walked with a snort. “How do you think I met Callie? I crashed, badly, and she saved my life.” The seeker grinned at those fond memories, suddenly realizing he had not seen his little human in days. Frowning suddenly, the seeker struggled to remember the last time he had spent any time with his human, and found he was unable to.

“Will you tell me about it?” Fireflight asked, risking a glance up, drawing Thundercracker’s attention once again.

Thundercracker shrugged as he headed to the medbay, the gleaming white doors coming into view. “Sure.” A small smirk spreading across his face. “Callie, however, can tell it much better than I.”

Fireflight grinned up at him, the last of his tears drying up at the prospect at hearing how the odd little humans had ended up in their base. Then the youngling suddenly froze, causing Thundercracker to pause with him. “What now?” the seeker questioned, helm canting.

Fireflight took a step behind Thundercracker, glancing at the med bay doors. “Ratchet’s scary.” He whispered. True fear etched in the youngling’s face.

Thundercracker frowned. He himself had heard of the medic’s reputation, had seen it first-hand, and in all honesty the seeker didn’t believe half of what he heard; sure he had seen Ratchet wallop Skywarp upside the helm, but even that didn’t come close to the rumours. Rumour had it that all who resided within the _Ark_ , including the Prime himself, lived in a near state of fear of the medic.

A grin spread across the older flier’s face, grinning at the youngling. “Come on now. You can’t actually be afraid of Ratchet.”

Fireflight’s optics paled for a moment as he nodded, causing the older seeker to laugh. “Let’s go Fireflight. The medic is not going to hurt us, most medics are incapable to do so.”

Falling in line slightly behind Thundercracker, wings itching as bark dug its way deeper into the seams, Fireflight cast the seeker a nervous look, sadness and now fear tinging the blue orbs. “I dunno Thundercracker, even Ironhide is afraid of the Hatchet. You’ve never seen him really angry.”

The seeker snorted as the white doors swung open, allowing the blue armoured warrior to stride in with even, confident steps. “Fireflight, please. The medic is not nearly as terrifying as you think.”

“Yeah, but, he’s always threatening to reprogram us every time we end up here. And that’s a lot since we crash often.” The Aerialbot fell silent as he followed Thundercracker in.

Ratchet glanced up as the seeker entered his medbay, fire and anger suddenly igniting in his cobalt blue orbs, darkening with a sudden venom the seekers had yet to see. Thundercracker turned to reassure Fireflight once more that Ratchet was not a threat to them, that like all medics, he was there to help them.

The seeker’s smooth lip plates were already forming the pacifying words when Ratchet snatched his wrench from the even table top it sat aloft, the medic abandoning the downed mech he was working on and storming behind the taller warrior.

Fireflight’s optics widened in alarm, fear buzzing through his systems and his EM fluxed in a near panic, his grey lips formed an ‘O’ of surprise. It all happened so quickly, the Aerialbot’s tracking systems cataloguing Ratchet’s movements as a full on attack, his battle and survival protocols snapping online; causing the world around him to slow for a moment, coming into focus a thousand times clearer.

It gave Fireflight the perfect vantage point to watch as Ratchet stomped up behind the unsuspecting seeker and wallop him upside the head with his wrench, using enough power to drop Thundercracker to his knees. The younger of the two fliers jerked in surprise, part of him demanding he attack and protect his commander; the stronger part of him flinched back, knowing it was his CMO that had just struck Thundercracker down, and posed no lethal threat to the seeker.   

Besides, the small, rational part of the F-4 Phantom’s processor argued, that if Ironhide didn’t dare take on the medic when angered, what chance did he hold?

The world sped up once more, causing the young Autobot to blink and give his helm a small shake as Ratchet began to yell.

“You! What is your problem, you two bit, lazy, half winged bitlet!” Ratchet snarled from over the blue seeker, servos balled and planted firmly on cherry red hips.

Thundercracker clung to his glossy black helm, head bowed as he tried to get the ringing in his audios to stop, only half listing to the angry words being hurled at him. Helm snapping up, unable to blink away the lubricant that came from his optics as pain spread down his neck and into his shoulders, Thundercracker snarled back at the medic.  

“ _What the frag is wrong with you!_ ”

Ratchet drew back as though he had been slapped, arms suddenly crossing over his heavily armoured chest. “What’s wrong with me!?” A broken snarl ripped through Ratchet’s chest, causing his engine to shutter. “Oh mechling, I should bend you over my knee like a sparkling!”

Pushing to stand, the tree branch digging uncomfortably inside his thruster, and still clutching the sore spot of his helm, Thundercracker tried to loom over the medic. His armour flared wide and his EM flickered with a hostility that was reserved for battle.

But the medic still managed to seem to tower over the seeker, looking down his nose at him, despite Thundercracker’s height advantage. “I’ve done nothing wrong medic! And you just _attacked me! So, please tell me, WHAT DID I DO!?”_

Blue optics narrowed in disdain, not in the least bit afraid of the seeker as he clenched at his wrench a little tighter. Fireflight took another step back, fully prepared to flee and leave Thundercracker to his fate.  

“I’ll tell you what you’ve done!” Ratchet hissed, shoving his wrench into Thundercracker’s face aggressively. “You’ve made your human cry, that’s what!”

The anger melted from Thundercracker’s face as his expressive wings drooped low at his back. “What do you mean I made her cry?”

Ratchet scowled as he took a step back, relaxing slightly before the two fliers. “Exactly that. You made her cry, right here in my medbay.”  

“But…” the seeker looked genuinely confused by this sudden news, even more than a little alarmed and worried over his charge’s distress. “But I haven’t seen her in days! I haven’t done anything!”

Ratchet snarled at the seeker. “That’s the point! You haven’t seen her in days Thundercracker! _Days!_ And believe me, I know it’s been days since that’s how long she’s been moping around my medbay!”

“But…”

The wrench waved threateningly in front of the seeker’s grey face. “Shut it! No buts! I saw her crying in here the other day because of _you_! Because she thinks you’ve abandoned her, after all she’s done for you! I don’t care what barn you’re working on, or that it’s a surprise for her. If you make her cry one more time, I swear to Primus that _I will reformat you!_ Do you understand me!?”

The blue seeker’s optics paled for a moment before they brightened in understanding. “Yeah, okay, I’ll talk to her.”

Ratchet scowled. “See that you do it as soon as you’re out of here.”

Backing down, plating pulling tight to his protoform, Thundercracker took a step back. “I’ll see it done.”

Snorting, Ratchet nodded, turning his back to the fliers as he stormed back to the first berth where Red Alert lay prone. “Good!” he snapped over his shoulder. “Now get your afts on those berths and tell me what’s wrong with you!”

Optics wide, Thundercracker nodded, lowering his voice to address Fireflight. “You said he was scary, you said nothing about being psychotic.”

Blue optics blinked back at him. “There’s a difference?” the Aerialbot whispered back.

Thundercracker sighed, mouth opening to respond when Ratchet’s annoyed voice snapped at the pair of them. “What’s the holdup mechlings! On the berths, now!”

The pair of fliers jerked back, Thundercracker shoving Fireflight roughly behind him instinctively, as though to protect him. The medic tossed him another look that caused the seeker to swallow and slowly walk to the empty berths.

The pair moved hesitantly through the medbay as Ratchet turned and gathered his needed equipment, harsh voice tossed over his shoulder. “So, what happened to the pair of you?”

The seeker settled on one berth, servo rubbing at his helm as Fireflight perched on the other, looking every bit as terrified as he likely felt. Calmly, as though to not anger the medic, Thundercracker cleared his throat to answer. “Just a little crash. Fell into some,” the seeker paused glancing at the little Aerial.

“Trees.” Fireflight supplied. His tone firmer than before.

Ratchet nodded as he turned back to the pair, optics still hot with his anger as he pushed the trolley with tools to sit between them.

Taking a gamble, Thundercracker decided to turn the medic’s attention onto something else as he began to examine Firelight’s trembling wings. “What happened to Red Alert?”

“He crashed.” The medic responded gruffly, small tool digging into the white wing, Fireflight pushing into the gentle touch.

Thundercracker frowned, metal brow pulling down. “How?”

Shrugging, Ratchet reached for another tool. “Between the stress of finding out that Starscream is going to command the Aerialbots, and with Liz continuing to send him viruses that glitch the _Ark’s_ system, it was only a matter of time that he did.”

Helm canting, Thundercracker picked that answer apart. “How did the other commanders react, with the training of the Aerials?”   

Ratchet frowned at the wing that he held open. “Oh, you know. Ironhide didn’t like the thought of exposing the younglings to you.”

That caused Thundercracker to frown and his EM to flicker in annoyance. Fireflight jerked, his face full of hurt tipping towards the medic. “But the seekers are good teachers.”

Ratchet nodded in agreement. “I have no doubt. Though, you did crash.” Blue optics glanced up, amused, to catch the seeker’s burning ones before glancing back down. “But Prowl and Jazz agreed. Prowl sees the logic in having Starscream lead your training.”

“So your top two commanders think this is a good idea?” That was interesting, if not hopeful news to Thundercracker. 

Ratchet snorted as he realigned Fireflight’s wing. “The top three. Optimus thinks it’s a wonderful idea.”

Crimson optics narrowed at the medic and his dripping sarcasm, almost defensively. “And what about you medic, what do you think?”

Ratchet snorted. “I think it’s a perfect idea.” The white helm swivelled to meet the bright optics of the Decepticon flier. “If the mechlings hope to survive this war, they need good teachers. You forget Thundercracker, since the beginning of the war I’ve seen what you can do.”

There was warning in that tone, a lot left unsaid in the hope of a remaining peace. A lot that Thundercracker understood immediately as the thought of Praxus filtered through his mind. Ratchet would have seen what he had done there, in cold blooded energon, and had undoubtedly seen him, and most of the Decepticons, caught on the brink of madness as their bloody war waged.

An experience the youngling had not yet had to bear witness to.

“And if there is anyone out there who can teach them to survive, it’ll be you three.” Ratchet stated, almost softly as he turned back to the wing he tended too, and Thundercracker could see great ease there. Could see a mech that cared far too deeply for those he deemed himself responsible for.

Mechs that Thundercracker was also now responsible for. 

Thundercracker felt unease tighten in his tanks for a moment as he thought that, if they failed, it would not only be the Aerialbots that would pay the price. The entire _Ark_ from the Prime to the frontliners would feel the sting, the agony of a loss. A loss that Thundercracker himself would likely feel.

Optics dimming, the sudden weight of what was happening around him, how suddenly things had changed caught up with Thundercracker all at once;  crushing down on him, causing his vents to hitch and his joints to seize.

Ratchet turned upon hearing the soft noise that Thundercracker produced, frowning at the look of unexpected fear etched into the other’s handsome grey face. Reaching over Fireflight, who was silent during the whole exchange, the ambulance squeezed tightly at the panicking seeker’s pectoral vent, drawing wide crimson optics towards him. 

“Stop it.” Ratchet told him gruffly. “The younglings could not ask for better teachers.”

Thundercracker swallowed, forcing down his own insecurities as he nodded to the medic. Needing to change the subject and stop thinking about what the future might hold, and what losses were coming to them, the seeker nodded to Red Alert.

“So, Liz is still sending him viruses?”

Ratchet patted his shoulder once more before he turned back to Fireflight, nodding. “Yeah. She really does need to stop that.”

“You don’t know why she does it?” the seeker asked, far more comfortable in a conversation that did not involve him.

Ratchet snorted. “I haven’t the faintest idea Thundercracker.” He glanced up to the seeker, a smirk playing on his face. “But I do blame you for bringing crazy humans onto our base.”

Thundercracker frowned at that, and before he could retort, Fireflight chimed in with “Well, did you really expect anything less from a Decepticon and humans that are favoured by the Lambo twins?”

The seeker glared at Fireflight for that, making the youngling look down almost bashful while Ratchet laughed. “Well, I don’t think they both like them. Sunstreaker did not seem particularly fond of Daniella.”

Rolling his optics, Thundercracker leaned back onto his servos, letting his pedes dangle a little while he waited for his turn. “Well, I don’t think Sunstreaker is particularly fond of anyone.” The seeker snorted softly, causing the medic to huff a dry laugh.

It brought a grin to Thundercracker face, and the seeker thought that maybe, if the others could be like Ratchet, their future wouldn’t have to be so bleak.

***  

Being freed from the medbay, long after Fireflight had gone skipping from Ratchet’s domain, Thundercracker casually strolled down the hall, Ratchet’s words to search out Callie and set things right with her, still fresh in his mind.

He needed to think about what he was going to say to her, needed time to figure out how to approach the situation without igniting that rarely seen anger.

The seeker swung around the corner, shoulders loose, wings feeling better without the branches and bark digging between his joints, and scratching at wires. He was gathering his courage, picking the correct words that would placate any anger and hurt feelings, when Callie swung around the opposite corner, blue eyes pinned on the small data pad she held in her hands.

A black satchel was tossed over a single shoulder, the bag itself full of data pads, no doubt reading material that Ratchet had given the woman to keep her entertained in his absence; blue orbs were sharp and focused on what she was reading, long blonde hair pulled into a messy bun, sipping from a thermos as she read.

He grinned when he saw her, a far cry from their time out on the road, and he sometimes longed for those precious moments when they had first met. He opened his mouth to greet her, just as her blue orbs lifted to see who was approaching her, an easy smile already curling at the corners of her mouth.

But her bright grin fell almost instantly when she spotted his blue armour and proud wings. Her look soured as she frowned up at him, before eyes dropping pointedly down to her data pad, her eyes unmoving as she pretended to read.

Something squeezed in Thundercracker’s chest, his spark throbbing unhappily as she purposely ignored him, her mouth pulled into an unhappy frown, and he felt his wings wilt under her wounded look.

Mouth pulling into a grim line, Thundercracker forced his wings higher, back straightening a little as he watched her approach him. He shifted his stance so that she was forced to stop in front of him. “Callie?”

The blonde halted at his pede, blue eyes firmly on her data pad as her mouth pursed. “What?”

Thundercracker didn’t wince at her snappish tone, he had dealt with Starscream’s flaring temper long enough, so dealing with Callie’s rare rage should be fairly easy. “Are you,” he paused, trying to gauge just how angry she was. “Okay?”

“Fine.” There was an edge to her voice, a certain sharpness to her tone as she refused to look at him.

Thundercracker shifted, a certain unease beginning to fill him. “You sure?”

“Yup.” Came her firm response, and Thundercracker shifted again, knowing he had likely dug himself a rather deep hole this time.

“Do you want to go flying?” he cringed internally at how pathetic that sounded, how weak his voice was.

Callie sighed heavily, and refusing to look at him she began to walk around his armoured pede. “No, I’m busy.”

Frowning as he watched her walk around him, the seeker heaved a sigh. “Callie wait a sec. Just give me a chance to explain.”

Angry blue eyes tipped up to him as she spun to face him. “Explain what?” she suddenly snapped, her pale face flushing pink. “How you suddenly have no time to hang out with me anymore? You have time for everyone else, even Hound, but you don’t have time to speak to me!”

Her eyes dropped back down quickly when she felt them burning and tingle with tears, her mouth pulling hard in a line, jaw pushed forward.

Thundercracker felt his wings droop low, feeling a little worse at hurting her feelings. Heaving a sigh, the seeker crouched next to his charge, elbows perching on his knees. “Callie.” The hardest words to say were always, “I’m sorry.”

The human shifted as she waited for him to continue, blue eyes still watching the data pad blankly. “I know I’ve been busy, and I know that we haven’t gotten to spend much time together, but that doesn’t mean that I’ve forgotten about you.”

Watery eyes lifted hesitantly, almost as though she weren’t entirely sure, the awful frown still marring her face. He forced a grin, wishing he had more time to think about what he wanted to say. “I’m sorry that we haven’t had time to hang out, and I know you’re worried about your cousin. But,” he paused, the grin coming easier, real. “But it will be okay. Sunstreaker will bring Danny home and you two can keep fighting again, and everything will go back to normal.”

Callie snorted, glancing away from him. “Nothing’s ever normal for us.” She muttered under her breath.

Thundercracker shrugged, feeling every ounce of awkwardness between them, and it left the seeker wondering how they had drifted so far apart so quickly. “If you were normal,” Thundercracker managed to shrug. “You’d have never had met me.”

Her frown deepened a little, her tiny fingers running along the edge of her data pad as the Decepticon continued. “And I would either be dead on the side of the road, or worse, still with Megatron.”

He held his servo out to her, palm up, in an offering. “And my trine would be stuck under Megatron still, wasting to nothing.”

Callie shifted, the tears slowly drying up. “That would be terrible.” Came her muttered reply. “And who would Mia bother then?”

Thundercracker’s grin widened a little further. “Come on, we’ll go for a flight and you can tell me about what the medic is teaching you. And I can complain about the baby jets that Starscream wants us to train.”

Callie looked up at him, the hurt still in the edges of her eyes. “They can’t be that bad.” She argued.

A metal brow rose, almost in disbelief. “Fireflight crashed after watching birds flying.”

Blue eyes blinked up at him, an amused grin spreading across her face. “That why you’re coming from the medbay?”

The seeker gave an embarrassed sort of nod, causing his human to snort with a dry laugh. “You okay?”

Nodding, Thundercracker gave a small shrug. “Yeah. I sent Fireflight back out to Starscream to finish the afternoon with them.”

Callie regarded the servo offered to her, shifting again. “I need to finish this data pad on seeker anatomy.” She sifted from one foot to the other. “It’s part of my training with Ratch.” She glanced up hesitantly, suddenly gripping the data pad a little harder. “You want to help me understand it?”

Thundercracker blinked down at her, grin spreading wider still. “I’d love to.”

For the first time in days, Callie genuinely smiled as she stepped onto his offered servo, and Thundercracker felt the tight knot around his spark loosen.

***

Liz smiled, happy for the first time in a while as she ate lunch. Callie and Thundercracker were pouring over the data pad that Ratchet had given her on seeker anatomy, the Vosian flier helping her remember the different names of the internal structures of the wings.

Perched on the hacker’s lap, her lap top was open, information on how to properly care for the dessert plants they had just planted that morning along the riding trails they had made for Callie and Lucy, on the screen. Hound was sitting behind her, drinking his energon, happily chatting with Skywarp and Sideswipe, the terrible duo not causing trouble for once; Sideswipe’s cobalt optics still tinged with a loneliness that only Sunstreaker would fill.

Mia was next to the small hacker, complaining, once again, that Starscream was avoiding her, the red head all the more determined to corner the seeker and bully him into talking with her.

Liz didn’t hold much hope for her sister, she doubted that Mia would be able to make Starscream listen to her. It wasn’t the size difference, it was more to the fact that the Decepticon commander wouldn't allowed himself to be cowed again, ever.

The bony little hacker tuned out to her ranting sister; let Mia sort things out with Starscream on her own.

The lunch, for once, went smoothly. Cliffjumper had tried only once to start a fight with Thundercracker, but Callie’s sharp tongue about his size and where else that may apply, sent the red mini bot sulking away from their little group.

It had put a smirk on Sideswipe and Skywarp’s faces, and brought a smile to Thundercracker’s, the pride in his charge clear in his EM. It was a nice, quiet lunch, and it seemed that the anger amongst the Autobots and few Decepticons had finally lifted after weeks of arguing and infighting.

Things were returning to a level of normal that would allow them to be at least happy.

Then Mirage walked into the mess hall.

His icy blue optics narrowed when he saw Hound, with Liz, once again. The hacker saw the look of contempt on the noble’s face, the look of pure loathing that Mirage had for the human who dared to befriend his potential mate.

Shoulders drew back, making him seem taller than he was, helm tipped up, held high, looking down his nose at the human. Liz shrunk back, pressing her small body against Hound’s armoured arm, making herself seem as small as possible as Mirage stormed towards them.

The former noble stormed to the tracker, fuming behind him, face pinched in anger as he loomed over Hound. The conversation at their table died down as all optics turned towards Mirage in silent awe, all more than a little nervous at the spy’s flickering EM and anger.

The strained silence was thick around the group as Hound slowly turned around, much in the same manner the victim in a silly horror movie does when they are about to face the axe murderer for the last time. But in the place of a crazed psychopath, the blue and white noble stood, fists pressed into his hips, scowl marring his face.

Hound gave the spy a shaky smile that didn’t quite reach his optics, and no one at the table doubted that the tracker would have chosen to deal with a crazed murderer at that very moment, and not the angered Towers mech.

“Hey Mirage. Do you…want to have some lunch with us?”

If at all possible, Mirage drew taller, his optics chilling to a vicious cold that hid the hurt well. “We were.”

Confusion crossed Hound’s face for a moment, clearly not understanding what Mirage was talking about. “I’m sorry, what?”

The corner of the spy’s optic actually twitched, annoyance filling his EM. “You were supposed to meet me for lunch at the entrance of the _Ark,_ an hour ago.”

Hound’s optics brightened, his mouth falling open in silent horror. “Oh Mirage! I’m sorry, I completely forgot.”

The Ligier’s optics narrowed, his EM drawing in tight to his frame. “So I’ve gathered, since you left me waiting there for the last _hour_!”

“Mirage, I’m so sorr-” the green mech started, but the other was already walking backwards, helm shaking.

“Forget it Hound. Just,” an unreadable look crossed the noble’s face, almost sad as he watched the tracker for a moment, before hardening back to the anger that Hound dreaded. “Just forget it.”

The Autobot spy turned all the way around, storming back the way he came, no one daring to speak a word as the noble left.

Distress and guilt suddenly raced through Hound’s EM, making his tanks churn as he watched Mirage’s retreating form. “Uhh. Sorry Liz, I have to go.”

Liz nodded as Hound stood suddenly, taking off after the wounded mech, trying to not run after the spy.

Heaving a sigh, Liz turned back to the group, trying to ignore the knotting of her guts as guilt rushed through her body. She hadn’t meant to come between Hound and Mirage, hadn’t meant to be the cause of strife between the two. Thundercracker and Callie were making a point of staring at a data pad, while Skywarp and Sideswipe both were trying to mask their amused grins.

“I have to say,” Skywarp said smoothly, unable to quite hide his smirk. “When we came to the Autobots, I didn’t think it would be so full of drama here.”

Thundercracker sighed, firmly ignoring his mate as Sideswipe laughed. “Please Warp. This is barely the tip of the iceberg.”

Skywarp laughed again, causing Thundercracker to roll his optics. “And there goes any hope of having a peaceful existence.”

Callie laughed suddenly, the light sound bringing a measure of delight to Thundercracker’s spark; a sound that he had not heard enough of in the last few weeks. “TC, if you wanted a peaceful existence, why did you bond with a youngling?”

Thundercracker’s optics narrowed as the table erupted in howls of laughter, the incident with Mirage already forgotten by all but the tiny hacker. The blonde smiled up at the blue hued seeker, her toothy grin flashing up at him as her cousins continued to giggle.

“You’re not allowed to hang out with Starscream anymore.” The seeker dead panned, almost pouting at the femme. It only caused Callie to laugh again, calling his bluff.

Heaving air through his vents, Thundercracker was just glad that they weren’t fighting anymore.

***

Sunstreaker glared down at the pathetic excuse of a human that he had pinched between his digits, the small fleshy body squirming as he was held off the ground.

“Where is Danny, Brandon?” The Autobot asked as calmly as he could, his rage tempered down to a boil.

The dark haired male squirmed again, looked more afraid than uncomfortable. “I don’t know!” he whined. “I would tell you if she had been here. We haven’t seen her in a while, I thought she was dead before you showed up!”

Sunstreaker frowned at that. “Why would you think she was dead?”

“Well.” Brandon now looked uncomfortable, a little abashed. “Because we didn’t tell her that Dennis was back in town, and he knows she’s here. In the city.”

Something shifted inside of Sunstreaker’s chest, something he couldn’t identify. “Who’s Dennis?”

Brandon squirmed again. “Dennis was part of their car stealing ring and was dating Callie years back. Then he and his brother tried to kill the girls so they could make a better profit, and Danny ended up killing George, Dennis’ brother. Dennis swore he would kill Danny and Callie for it, and he’s been searching for them ever since.”

Something cold grew from the centre of Sunstreaker’s spark. If this Dennis character killed Danny before Sunstreaker found her, he would fail Prowl. Something he was not willing to do. “How would he know Danny is here?”

Brandon had the decency to look ashamed. “I told him.”

Rage lit hot again, and Sunstreaker had to fight the urge to slam the human into the ground. “Why would you do that?” the frontliner hissed.

Brandon flinched and made a weak noise. Primus this human was pathetic. Danny, as annoying as she was, at least didn’t cringe or cower before him. The thought startled Sunstreaker for a moment, wondering when his contempt for her and turned to a bitter admiration. Sure, she was a good driver, a competent thief, but that didn’t mean Sunstreaker had to admit that.   

Pushing the thoughts away, Sunstreaker snarled, causing Brandon to flinch again.

“Dennis has paid off a lot of the gangs, stacies and interns that she is known to associate with, to help him find her. It was only a matter of time before she slipped up and started stealing again.” The dark haired man managed a shaky grin. “I mean, you don’t like her, so why do you care if we all made a quick buck?”

Sunstreaker snarled, the rev of his engine wiping the smug look from Brandon’s pale face. “How I feel about her doesn’t matter.” He snarled. “And if anything happens to her, before I find her, I’m coming right back here to deal with you. Understand?”

Brandon squeaked, and nodded his head, dark hair falling into his eyes.

Sunstreaker sneered. “Good!”

He lowered the human, before dropping him. High enough to startle, but not near high enough to kill him. Pushing to stand, Sunstreaker stormed from the junk yard’s parking lot, kicking the ball of metal that was once Epps’ motorcycle.

He needed to find Danny before this Dennis guy did. If Dennis got to her first, he would not only disappoint Prowl, it would hurt Sideswipe if he didn’t bring the little glitch back alive.

***

**TBC…**                                                    


	7. A Little Time at the Ark

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sunstreaker finds Danny in a tight spot, while life on the Ark continues.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Important Information  
> “Blah” Speaking  
> ::Blah:: comm. link  
> ‘Blah’ bonded speech  
> ‘Blah’ thinking
> 
> Astrosecond- 2.5 earth Seconds  
> Klik- 150 earth seconds/ 2.5 earth Minutes  
> Orn- 150 earth minutes/ 2.5 earth Hours  
> Joor- 60 earth hours/2.5 earth Days  
> Metacycle- 17.5 earth days/2.5 earth Weeks  
> Vorn- 10 earth weeks/2.5 earth months  
> Stellercycle-30 earth months/2.5 years  
> Breem-slang for a moment/minute.  
> Night Cycle: star down to star up  
> Day Cycle: Star up to star down
> 
> Authors Note: Hurray! I actually updated! xD 
> 
> A huge thank you to anyone who is still reading, even after such a long break from my last update. You know, real life and all that. 
> 
> And a massive thank you to Darkness_Rising for betaing this chapter. :D 
> 
> Disclaimer: I own only my OC’s, nothing else.

Staring at Ironhide from across the table they sat at, Skywarp forced himself not to glare, despite the fact that the old warrior was not hiding his own unamused look. The blue optics narrowed in disdain at the younger flyer, red servos balled tightly into fists so tight the joints creaked. 

Ruby optics narrowed, mouth pulling into a hard line, the purple jet’s arms crossed as he leaned a little further back in his chair; his actions causing Ironhide to snarl, his engine rumbling with displeasure. 

“Stop it ‘Hide!” Annabelle’s tiny voice rang out as the little blonde sat at her own pink table which perched safely on his the larger table. Her bright eyes narrowed up at him, mouth pulled into a bitty pout. “You said you would play with us!” 

Skywarp heaved a sigh through his vents, glancing away to leave Ironhide to withstand the pouty faces of the two tiny blondes who resided within the Ark. “Yes well, when you said you and Lucy wanted to play, this is not what I had in mind.” 

The old warrior trailed off, feeling all the more embarrassed, no doubt that Skywarp was feeling the same way; but the youngling humans were having none of it. Lucy made a face while Annabelle’s scrunched in anger. “But you said you’d play with us, and Lucy’s never been to a tea party either, so we’re going to play tea party!” 

For a moment the bright blue optics of the Autobot and the deep ruby ones of the Decepticon were drawn to the small pair of humans sitting between them; the bright pink plastic table they had set up stood out like a sore thumb, the miniature tea set and plastic cups decorated with princesses set perfectly. 

Ruby optics glanced up to meet blue and Ironhide sighed. This was really about to happen. Yup, he was going to have a tea party with the hellion who rivalled Sideswipe. 

The red Autobot’s comm buzzed suddenly and Ironhide activated it quickly, hoping for an out to this ridiculous endeavor. The weapons master wilted when Skywarp’s cool tone came over the line. ::Alright Old Timer. I’ll make you a deal.:: Ruby optics glanced down to Lucy, who looked back up with such hope. ::We’ll play tea party, and we’ll….be nice for the girls. And we will never. Speak. Of this. Again.:: 

Ironhide nodded, glancing down to Annabelle. ::Agreed.:: 

Gathering his courage, wishing to be anywhere else in the universe at that moment, Ironhide took a deep vent. “Alright Anne. I’ll have some tea then.”   
Delight lit up the girls faces, two pairs of blue eyes sparkling. “It’s Princess Anne.” Lucy informed him, and the older mech could practically hear the duh that was unspoken. 

Ironhide heaved a heavy sigh, and never before had he hoped for Decepticon activity before in his life. He glanced up at Skywarp who was beginning to look amused by the whole thing before looking back to Lucy and Anne. “Of course, Princess Anne. Can I have some tea?” 

Delight spread across the girls’ faces but it did nothing to sooth the embarrassment from the warrior’s spark. 

“Can I be a Duke then?” Skywarp asked, a sly look on his young face, and Ironhide could have very merrily have killed him had it not been for the gleeful looks of the two young girls in their presence. 

Heaving another tired sigh, Ironhide knew it was going to be a very long afternoon. 

***

Hound and Mirage sat side by side, looking at the barn that so many of them had worked on, the setting sun dipping low behind the tall building that still waited for the horses it had been built for. If rumor was to be believed Prowl would soon be venturing out with Thundercracker and Skywarp to track down the girls’ horses. 

The warm wind blew through the small area, kicking up sand and dirt, dancing around the small flowers and carrying their scent to the two Autobots. Mirage sighed as he glanced around, examining the hard work that Hound had put into the garden.

The noble glanced at the green tracker, seeing the almost sad look on the other’s face as he chewed his lip; it was cute how his soft, pliable lip caught in his denta but his soft blue optics were dim in their disappointment in himself. Hound knew he had hurt Mirage, the one thing he had promised to never do.   
They all had their issues, every Autobot on the Ark did and many of them went out of their way to ensure that they didn’t hurt one another other. It was what Hound always tried to do for his fellow Autobot’s, but especially Mirage. 

Mirage was more than just his friend. 

Hound’s shaky servo stretched across the small space between them, his hesitant digits brushing at Mirage’s just before he intertwined their tips. 

“Mirage.” The tracker’s hesitant voice finally broke between them. “I know I’ve sort of been ignoring you, but I didn’t mean to.” His dim optics dipped down to look sadly away from Mirage. “I…I’m really sorry ‘Raj. I hurt you and that’s not right, it’s not okay. I forgot about you and that’s something that I promised to never do.” 

Hesitant optics glanced up again, almost worried to meet Mirage’s optics, and the Towers mech felt himself melt. He never could stay angry at Hound for long and shifting his servo so that he clasped the other’s servo a little tighter, Mirage tried to find the ability to say it was okay; to forgive. 

Growing up, the Towers mech was taught to never forgive nor forget; only to force a smirk and get your revenge later. He had seen many a youngling emotionally and socially destroyed because of the ‘games’ they used to play. The same twisted games mechs had tried to play with him in their campaigns to bring him down, and that he had played with others, coming out the victor. 

It was difficult for Mirage to let things go, even more so when he had been wounded by one he held dear. 

“I know Hound.” Mirage muttered as he shifted closer to the other, his servo squeezing his lover’s. “I know you are.” Mirage wasn’t used to sharing, and that included Hound’s time. “We’ll work it out.” The noble shrugged, bringing an almost grin to Hound’s face. 

Hound nodded, knowing that Mirage’s words didn’t mean he was fully forgiven and the tracker was going to have to work to make back the ground he had lost with Mirage. No matter, Hound thought to himself, his confidence growing once more, he was more than willing to work for Mirage; the noble was worth it, even if Mirage did think the opposite occasionally. 

A half smirk flickered across the blue mech’s face before he leaned down and pressed a quick, soft kiss to Hounds mouth, pulling away quickly before the tracker had time to respond. Mirage wasn’t prepared to forgive much more than that yet, wasn’t ready to move beyond a quick kiss quite yet. 

Hound let his easy going grin slip across his face, albeit much smaller than usual and it didn’t quite reach his optics, but he had hope, hope that things would get better from here. 

Mirage glanced away, looking at the desert plants and flowers that Hound had painstakingly gathered with his friend. He had put so much of himself into building the garden and the corner of the noble’s mouth quirked. “Your garden is very pretty Hound.” He said lamely, not sure what else to say. 

Hound’s mouth twitched. “Thanks.” 

The awkward silence echoed loudly between them, both unsure of what else to say to one another. 

“So,” Mirage started again, “I heard that Red Alert crashed after Liz sent him another virus.”

Hound sighed. “Yeah. I’ve told her to stop but sadly her judgment is sound.” 

Mirage canted his helm, metal brow furrowing, nose scrunching. “You know why she is doing it?” 

Blue optics blinked at his lover. “Well, Yeah. I just asked her why.” 

The former noble blinked at the tracker. “Which is?” 

“Huh? Oh! She’s finding the chinks in our armour.” 

Mirage narrowed his optics. “I’m not in the mood to play games Hound.” 

Hound gave his lover a sheepish smile. “Sorry. What I mean is that Liz finds holes in Red Alert’s systems and exploits them in a harmless way. She is showing him where his weaknesses are, so that he can improve his systems.” 

The tracker glanced up at Mirage, squeezing his servo. “Because if Liz can get in, so can Soundwave.” 

“But how? There is no way a little hacker from Earth could possibly get through our systems!” 

Hound shrugged. “That’s the thing Mirage, a lot of our equipment was damaged in the crash and much of it has been repaired and replaced with a human version or modified version of what we used to have. Which is a lot of human coding, that Liz is very versed in.” 

Mirage shifted, suddenly feeling rather uncomfortable that a small, frail looking human had the knowledge to toy with Red Alert’s systems. It made him feel uncomfortable, and dizzy. “Does…does Red Alert understand what she’s doing?” 

Hound made a face. “I don’t think he’s caught on yet, he just sees her as toying with him, but Liz seems to think he gets it.” 

Mirage groaned, his helm falling into his servo. “Hound, he is going to blow up at her.” 

Hound sighed. “I know. I’ve tried to talk her out of doing this, but she’s determined.”

The noble sighed again, scrubbing at his optics. “Do you remember when things were normal?” 

“No.” Mirage looked up at the tracker, brow cocked. The tracker grinned, finding his lover’s facial expression cute. “’Raj, we’re trapped on an alien planet, in the middle of a civil war, when has anything been normal for us?” 

Mirage stifled a laugh, holding back on all the things he wanted to tell the other; and how without the war he would have never met Hound, how the tracker would have been poor and never would have been his friend. But these were the things the noble never said. Instead he held onto Hound’s servo, squeezing tightly, fighting another sigh. “It could be worse, I suppose.” 

Hound grinned. “Yeah. It could always be worse.” 

***

Starscream snarled as he marched next to the Prime, no embarrassment felt by the seeker over the night before when Optimus had found him self-serving in that grungy little supply closet; the seeker was too annoyed, too irritated. 

“She won’t bugger off!” the trine leader screeched, his wings swept back in annoyance. “I mean, she just won’t go away!” 

Optimus sighed, nodding as he tried to focus on the others ranting words. “Of course.” 

“No, Prime you don’t understand!” Starscream snapped, “I’ve asked her to go away. I’ve told her to go away, I’ve ordered her to go away! I threatened her!”   
Optimus glanced up at the last one, a frown pulling on his mouth as the seeker pouted. “I don’t get it. Anyone else, everyone else has left me be, But not her, she just bloody laughs and says she’ll see me later, and she does!” 

Venting deeply, the Prime shook his helm. “Yes, that does sound terrible Starscream, having someone want to be your friend. Primus forbid.” 

The seeker narrowed his optics on the Prime, his upper lip snarling at the leader. “She’s annoying.” 

“Maybe,” the Prime started as he risked a glance at the annoyed seeker, “Mia just wants a friend Starscream.” 

Crimson optics rolled at the Autobot’s sentiment. “Then why me?” he spat. 

“You saved her life.” Prime shrugged, trying to sooth the anger before it truly ignited. 

Starscream snorted. “Hero worship then.” 

“Or maybe she is lonely. With Aleyah sulking, Liz bothering Red Alert and helping Hound, Callie being trained by Ratchet and Thundercracker and with Danny running amuck in Las Vegas, Mia is very lonely. Her whole family is off doing other things with their own friends and she seems to have been left in the dust.” 

An uncomfortable feeling settled in the seeker’s spark as he glowered at the Prime; words he had not wanted to hear hitting a little too close to home. “I’m sure she can make other friends Prime. There is no reason why she must continue to bother me.” 

Optimus sighed as he drew to a stop, turning to face the seeker fully. “Starscream, despite her valiant efforts to put forth an outgoing persona, Mia is actually a very shy girl. She does not seek out others to spend time with as the rest of her family do, and she hardly says anything without the backing of either her cousin or older sister. She is quiet and reclusive but she wants to be your friend Starscream, likely because you were the one who dove after her and stopped her from dying that day. You are the only Cybertronian she has tried to befriend Starscream.” 

“Oh lucky me.” The seeker dead panned.

“She also avoids most members of NEST, despite their multiple failed attempts to woo her. The only exception is Lennox and Epps, but they are often busy. This just leads to a lonely little femme, looking for a friend.” 

Starscream rolled his crimson optics. “I have other things to attend to, like your baby jets, who incidentally can’t fly all that well by the way.” 

Optimus sighed, resettling the data pads under his arm. “How are they doing?” The Prime was almost afraid to ask. 

Raising an optic brow, Starscream replied, “They need a lot of work. I want to have someone work on history with them. They deserve to know why Megatron is trying to kill them.” 

Optimus’ optics flickered in surprise. “You want them to learn our history?” 

Starscream nodded. “They wanted to know how we came to be at this point, as well as what happened to Vos and Praxus, and I will not be the one to hamper their desire to learn.” 

Optimus nodded, a smile hidden by his mask. “I can see what I can do. Perhaps Prowl or Ironhide could…” 

The Prime trailed off as Ironhide’s voice filtered through the door to their backs, a pair of high pitched giggles accompanying it with the weapons master’s odd words. “Yes, M’Lady, Ah’d love more tea.” 

The aerial commander and the Autobots supreme commander shared a look of confusion, of concern. 

Starscream’s optics twitched. “Did you just…hear that?” 

Their discussion momentarily forgotten, Optimus found his helm canting. “I,” he paused for a moment, unsure if he did just hear that. “I think I did.” 

“That sounded like your weapons master.” 

The pair shared another look, frowning as they turned to the door at their back. They exchanged another glance before Optimus hit the button to open the door, and as the door slid open Optimus fought the urge to snort in laughter at the scene before him. 

Starscream had no such qualms about holding his laughter, his husky chuckle already vibrating through his chest. 

Ironhide and Skywarp were both sitting at a table, backs straight and a small cube of energon held in each of their servos, pinky digits straight up, while between them and sitting at a bright pink plastic table sat Annabelle and Lucy. Both girls were dressed in bright pink dresses and little paper hats with ribbons spiralling from the point. 

Both the seeker and the weapons master looked up when Starscream’s amused chortles broke through their softly spoken words; Skywarp lighting up in delight that others had come to play, while Ironhide looked rather horrified at being caught. 

The younger seeker’s smile brightened along with the little girls. “Hey Scree! OP! Come to join our tea party?” 

Ironhide felt the heat of embarrassment crawl up his chest and into his cheeks while he quietly set his cube down, trying to hunch in on himself and look smaller than he really was. 

“Yeah! Come play with us, Lucy was just about to tell us a story!” Anna said cheerfully.

The color drained from Lucy’s face as she looked down, nodding briefly.

Starscream and Optimus shared a look at the small girl’s concerned look, a frightened look that was noticed by Ironhide. It was her fear that Skywarp noticed, the shift in her mood evident. 

The commanders shared a brief look again. 

“Of course Anna. We’d love to hear Lucy’s story.” The Prime had said softly, slowly entering the room, taking a seat at the table, Starscream by his side. 

Anna brightened again at the prospect of others playing with them. “Lucy was going to tell us why Callie is so worried about Danny.” 

Optimus nodded, an uneasy feeling filling his spark. “Why is Callie so worried Lucy? Your cousin is very capable.” 

Lucy frowned, dark blue eyes filling with a fear that someone her age should not know. “Callie is afraid the bad man will find her.” She whispered.

From behind her Skywarp frowned. “Who’s the bad man?” 

Lucy glanced up, shifting uncomfortably, and even Anna noticed how her little friend looked so worried and fell silent beside her. 

“The bad man is Dennis. He was Callie’s boyfriend.” The little blonde rung her hands together, fear suddenly spiking, fresh as it was the day that Dennis Sumac had attacked her family. 

“He tried to kill us.” The girl whispered. 

No one moved or said a word, a new dread filling them as Lucy began her story and Optimus began to worry that perhaps there was a reason that Sunstreaker had not returned with Danny yet. Maybe he couldn’t find her for a reason. 

***

Sunstreaker rolled to a stop with a snarl of his engine. He had been chasing Danny around this neighbourhood for the last two and a half hours while she was ducking in and out of abandoned buildings in an old industrial area just outside the city. 

Something was wrong, however. Danny seemed more afraid of something else, seemed more annoyed to see him and his mind went directly to Brandon’s words, realising that Dennis must have found her. 

Annoyance flickered through the Autobot. If the little glitch would just stop being so bloody stubborn and come to him then he would have taken her back to the Ark and everything would have ended well a long time ago. 

Even now she had the option to find him for help, surely she realised he could protect her from small group of human goons. But no! Instead she ran the other way every time he got anywhere near her, dodging into another building with far more doors than he could keep track of. 

Stupid little glitch.

He tracked her through the building he saw her duck into; seeing that in this one she only had one exit option. Sighing, pondering how this was starting to become far too easy, Sunstreaker was able to count down the moments before the little thief came bursting from the back of the flat compound. 

She stumbled through the door, looking like she was tripping over her own two feet before face planting into the concrete. Sunstreaker snorted as he watched her scramble back onto her feet, her shoes slipping over the slick pavement as she bolted across the street and to another building. 

It was comical to watch her run, limping almost and Sunstreaker could see a trickle of red from her lower lip. He chuckled as she ran past him, brown eyes dark with rage and fear and he could hear her small, fleshy heart pounding in her chest. 

Amused, he watched her dart into another building, two men trailing behind her, racing after her as she ran, charging for the building she ran into. 

The Autobot waited for the matte brown door to slam shut behind them before Sunstreaker transformed with an annoyed sigh. So, apparently this Dennis had caught up with his little glitch and thought he could poach in on his hunt. 

Helm shaking, Sunstreaker strolled to the abandoned building Danny ran through, casually walking around to the back to wait. Smirking, he leaned against another, taller building, dark cobalt optics dim as he waited for her to reappear. 

Maybe if he was lucky her pursuers would catch her and rough her up a bit. Not enough to kill her, just enough to make her pay for all the crap she had put him through. The nasty smirk cut across Sunstreaker’s face, spreading wide as he chuckled. It’d be nice to see the glitch get what she has coming.

His pede tapped against an empty trash bin, the large metal container echoing hollowly while he waited. Heaving a sigh, the frontliner checked his chronometer and wondered where in the Pit the little glitch had gotten to. 

Impatience grew along with the frontliner’s easily triggered anger; all he wanted to do was get the fleshling and return to the Ark so that he could get himself some fresh energon, a hot shower and a solid recharge. Then he was going to strip every inch of paint from his frame, pull out every dent and start fresh.

There would be no more of this shoddy paint job nonsense and Sunstreaker dreaded the moment he would have to face himself in the mirror; the burn patches, bullet holes and the scratches causing him to cringe as he remembered the last few days spent chasing the brattling around the city. 

He also needed to make things up with Sideswipe, apologise for hurting his twin. 

This time though it was different. Now there were others trying to find her, and unlike him they would kill Danny if they found her first. 

The clang of a door being slammed open startled him from his musings and Sunstreaker watched from above as Danny stumbled once again through the door. Her left eye looked blackened, her jaw bruised and there was a steady trickle of blood dripping from her slit lip. 

The corners of Sunstreaker’s mouth pulled down, his perpetual frown deepening as he watched for a moment as one of her pursuers tackled her from behind like a line backer. The pair hit the cracked concrete with a dull thud, Danny throwing her arms up over her face to protect it, the leather of her coat tearing as she skidded along the ground. 

Her elbow shot up, catching the light haired man square in the nose with a satisfying crack! He grunted, large pale hands shooting up as blood poured from his face. From his position in the alley no one bothered to look at him as Danny shoved the man off her and shot to her feet just as the second human came bolting from the building. 

Taller and larger than his comrade, the dark haired man caught Danny just as quickly and Sunstreaker couldn’t help but role his optics at it all. How exactly had she survived all this time on her own when she was so easily caught? 

The thought took the Autobot off guard for a moment, because really, Danny was not that easy to catch; that much Sunstreaker knew from experience.   
The dark haired man, grabbing a hold of her arm hard enough to bruise, swung the woman around towards his body and straight into his charging fist. Even Sunstreaker winced at the crack as the large hand collided with Danny’s cheek, all the power of a muscular body slamming into her head, sending her skidding to the ground. 

The larger man was on her in an instant, pinning her dwarfed hands over her head with a single hand of his own, his other hand reaching for the gun poking out from the belt of his pants. Sunstreaker heard himself growl as the man pressed the gun to her head and all of Danny’s struggles ceased. This was not okay. This was not a fair fight. This was two much larger and stronger opponents beating on someone half their size. 

Black memories of his time in the gladiator pits suddenly rose like bitter ashes from his mind; how many times had he been the small one pinned down by a group of larger thugs and hurt? How many times had Sideswipe? His servos balled so tightly that they creaked, the cables tightening to a death grip and the pistons in his servos all fired with the action. 

Thoughts, broken memories of a time long passed, surfaced; bubbling up hotly, infecting his mind and causing his armour to shake. 

Servos, many servos pinned his frame down, drawing his wrists above his helm while he snarled and yelled. Fear coursed through him and he reached for Sideswipe along their bond. He cried out, hips bucking as servos dragged his ankles down and out, despite his kicking, to lock them in place at the edges of the berth. 

Sunstreaker, so drugged and lacking energon, cried out when he felt Sideswipe’s fear and need, the need for his twin, and pain-oh the pain Sideswipe was in, it made his tanks churn. He whimpered again as a larger frame leaned over him, a clawed servo resting on his chest, purple armour glinting in the overly bright light. 

A single, overly bright optic stared down at him as he sobbed, thrashing weakly against the bonds which held him. “You must be careful with twins.” The large mech over him said, servo wandering over his frame. “It takes time to breed them.” Sunstreaker’s vents hitched and he looked away. 

Pain lanced his spark and suddenly it didn’t matter to Sunstreaker why they were out there, he would not bear witness to a brutal assault again; he had always sworn after that first assault on his own frame that he would never let someone face the same thing he had. 

The frontliner went to move when the man spoke. “You know how many little bitches I’ve had pinned under me?” There was a hint of a gloat, a dark promise to the man’s smooth voice as he leaned down close. 

Danny snorted, her voice smooth as her heart rate slowed down. “Probably as many as I’ve had.”

Her small head suddenly snapped forward, her forehead slamming into the man’s nose and Sunstreaker felt himself smile when he heard it break. The man yelped as his eyes watered and jammed shut. “You stupid bitch!” he snarled as he reared back, hand coming to his face. 

Danny did not squander her chance and with her small hands free, they shot to the hand that held the gun, clamping down onto it with all her strength, her teeth finding the man’s wrist before he could comprehend what had just happened.

Screaming again, the man made the mistake of letting go of the gun as blood pooled from his wrist and breathing slowly, humming softly with her hips still pinned by the larger body, Danny pointed the gun at the man and pulled the trigger. 

The nine millimeter caliber burst from the weapon, shooting straight into the man’s skull and shattering the bone before bouncing around inside the man’s head. He was dead before he hit the ground, slumping to the side in a heap of flesh and blood. 

Sunstreaker felt a metal brow rise, quietly impressed and glad to see he wasn’t the only one who had issues with her; a tiny amount of respect for her slowly unfurling from his spark that only had to do with her survival skills and nothing else. It didn’t, however, take the pain of that memory from his spark, or the dark cloud from around him. 

The human suddenly started panting as the realization caught up to her and she struggled to escape. Wriggling her hips as she tugged herself out, blood smeared over her pants and Sunstreaker let her struggle, watching her with a keen interest. He’d be doing her no favors if he helped her out now. 

Both human and Cybertronian were startled when someone from inside the building laughed and started to slowly clap, and Sunstreaker watched as all the color from Danny’s face drained while fear, real fear, bled through her hard brown eyes as her jaw dropped ever so slightly. Sunstreaker frowned again as yet another male came swaggering out of the building, several others following him; the light haired man who had first attacked Danny scraping himself off the ground to stand behind him. 

Danny snarled softly as she struggled harder, shoving the large, heavy body from her smaller one. The women, bruised and bleeding shot to her feet as the man who was in charge of the little crew stopped several feet from her, his smile sharp, showing off his perfect white teeth. 

The Autobot glowered at him from the alley, observing for a moment; this man was dressed far better than the others, and could only be described as pretty. He was tall and thin with a head of thick black hair, chocolate brown eyes and golden skin. 

Sunstreaker hated him on sight. 

He grinned at Danny, eyes dark and malevolent as he stared at her. “Danny.” He intoned as he nodded to her, the men around him raising their guns to point at the woman. Sunstreaker froze, a soft snarl of his engine rumbling quietly, he needed her alive. “Drop the gun sweetie. I just want to talk.” 

Danny glared, her grip on the gun tightening as her dark eyes glanced around her, looking for a way out. “Go fuck yourself Dennis.”

Dennis frowned at her, tutting. “You never could stop cursing.” His head shook. “Always made you sound like a trucker.” 

Danny’s empty hand popped up, middle finger up. 

Dennis laughed and slowly walked forward, his hips swaying with his swagger, the movement setting Sunstreaker on edge, his denta baring silently as even Danny backed up. 

“Daniella, if you don’t drop that gun now, right now, my friends will shoot you down like a dog in the street.” 

Danny swallowed hard, her grip tightening once more on her weapon as she stepped over the strewn body of the man she killed. Dennis grinned at her. “Like a little bitch Danny. Now, drop the gun like a good little girl.” 

The thief snarled softly and took one more glance around, seeing no way out as Dennis blocked the path to the ally that Sunstreaker hid in. Focused too much on the threat before her to see him, Danny dropped the gun and baring her teeth, put her hands into the air in surrender. 

Dennis grinned. “That’s my dove.” 

“I’m not your dove, fucker.” She hissed at him as he stepped closer, close enough to touch, his knuckles brushing the bruise at her chin. 

“Where’s Callie, Danny? She must be nearby if you’re here.” He purred at her, and Sunstreaker could hear her heart skip as she drew away from him. He could practically smell the fear rolling off of Danny from where he watched. 

The Autobot squirmed uncomfortably, his spark swirling hotly in his chest, not liking where this was going in the least bit. 

“Some place,” Danny sneered, her voice firm and smooth despite her fear, “that you’ll never find her.” 

Dennis frowned, head canting as he regarded her. His hand shot out, grasping her throat hard enough to leave hand prints as he squeezed and Sunstreaker felt himself twitch toward her, gasping. His anxiety suddenly spiked, cobalt optics brightening in fear for her. This…this was not okay.

“Where. The. Fuck. Is. Callie!?” 

Danny wheezed a laugh as her small hands gripped his, nails biting into his hand, blood trickling from her bottom lip as she grinned. “Now who sounds like a trucker.” 

Dennis blinked at her before he chuckled. “I forgot how funny you think you are.” His fist pulled back behind him before it slammed hard into her belly, once, twice, and on the third time he let her go. Danny crumpled into a heap on the ground, coughing and gasping for air as she curled around her middle, trying to pull herself away. 

“WHERE IS SHE DANNY!?” 

Danny wheezed, trying to get back up. “Fuck you!” 

Dennis snarled in time with Sunstreaker, the Autobot’s golden frame tense and angry. 

The man grabbed at her, fisting a clump of her thick hair and tugging her upwards, forcing her to her knees. Walking slowly behind her, Dennis tightened his grip in her hair and gripping her chin to force her to look at the other men that clustered around them. 

Dennis laughed. “The things I’d let them do to you.” The back of his fingers brushing her cheek, and Danny jerked away with a snarl. “You’ll talk by the time they’re done with you. You’ll be begging to tell me where Callie is.” 

Danny forced a laugh, spitting blood. “Please. I doubt I’ll feel anything with these tiny pricks you’ve gathered.” 

Dennis laughed again. “I could always just kill you, and wait for Callie to come collect your cold dead corpse.” He glanced up at the group he had gathered to find her. “But of course you’ve insulted all my friends now, and I don’t think they like that very much.” 

He shoved Danny away, sending her face fist into the ground as he walked away from her, unknowingly back to where Sunstreaker quietly seethed, relieved as the slime ball put distance between himself and Danny. 

“I’m going to let these men hurt you Danny, for as long as it takes to make you talk. And you will talk.” Dennis snarled, arms crossed over his chest.   
Oh, I don’t fragging think so. Sunstreaker sneered to himself and he felt himself moving toward the lip of the ally, all bristling armour and crackling energy, fury rolling off him in thick waves. He was too close to his goal to let these fraggers screw it up now. 

Danny forced herself to her knees, upper lip pulled into a snarl aimed for the men who cornered her but when she saw Sunstreaker, for the first time since he had met her all he saw was a look of pure relief spread across her face at seeing him; her shoulders sagging and her small body seeming to deflate as her brown eyes softened with hope. 

As much as Sunstreaker may have hated her, despised her even, she was worth more to him alive, and she knew it. 

His weapon slipped from subspace with ease, a second natured habit that he was barely aware of doing. Then picking up the large, square garbage can, Sunstreaker took a hard step from the ally and into the open, his engine rumbling in hatred and anger. 

The ground trembled beneath his pedes, his engine running hard, vibrating his armour as it puffed wide in an effort to look larger and more aggressive. Upper lip pulling into a snarl, Sunstreaker glowered down at the pitiful humans below him. 

“Let her go!” Was ground out from between denta clenched so tight that he could taste metal shavings in his mouth. 

Dennis turned, a glower already set on his pretty face, one which melted into horror and shock. His face paled to a pasty color, making his eyes seem awkwardly bright, a shaking hand lifting to point at the bristling Autobot. “What the fuck is that!?” 

“That,” Danny wheezed as she forced herself to her feet, arms still banded around her waist. “Is three tons of alien bad assery in shiny gold armour.” She limped past Dennis who continued to stare up at Sunstreaker in both fear and awe. 

Giving her attacker a sharp grin, baring her blunt white teeth at him, Danny managed to snarl. “His name is Sunstreaker, and he totally needs me alive more than you need me dead.” She continued to limp past him, not bothering to even spare a glance over her shoulder. “See ya ‘round Dennis.” 

That seemed to snap her cousin’s ex-lover out of his stunned state, despite his small posse still staring up at Sunstreaker in horror, each wondering what kind of damage his gun could do. 

Dennis’ gun snapped back up, aimed for the back of a red headed woman’s skull, brown eyes flickering up to Sunstreaker and back to Danny. “No fucking way. I’ve spent way too much time and money hunting you down. You were the one who was dumb enough to come back to Vegas, this alien of yours can piss right off.” 

Sunstreaker snarled. “I don’t belong to her.” Cobalt optics bore hard into Dennis as he addressed the human he hunted for. “Let’s go Danny!”   
Danny managed a bright, mocking grin as she continued to walk away from Dennis, a grin that she threw over her shoulder and made sure he saw. “Coming!” her sing-song voice floated. 

Dennis gritted his teeth hard enough that Sunstreaker could hear them scrap against each other. “Get you’re fucking guns up!” he snarled at his team, drawing their stunned looks. “Now!” 

One squirmed, hesitant brown eyes glancing up at Sunstreaker and his narrowed gaze and icy blue optics. “Hey, Den, maybe we oughta not. That thing looks like it means business.” 

Sunstreaker bristled at being called a thing, he was an Autobot dammit! A former Kaon gladiator who had survived the Pits! He was hardly some little thing; even Danny seemed overly annoyed by the term the human used, but she never stopped her slow way directly to him. 

Dennis snarled, dark eyes narrowing on the man who dared suggest something other than what he had been ordered. “I don’t pay you to think, I’ve paid you to catch that bitch! Now do your job!” 

“But.” The man continued. “That thing...” Sunstreaker’s rumbling engine and snarling throat made the man stop midsentence and reconsider his words. 

“Sunstreaker here looks like he’s about ready to flatten the lot of us.” He glanced to Dennis. “We found her once, we can do it again.” 

Dennis turned his attention to the man next to him, dark eyes narrowed and angry, and with a smooth, even movement, he turned his gun from the back of Danny’s head to the temple of his comrade and pulled the trigger. 

Danny flinched at the sound of the gun going off followed by the sound of a heavy body hitting the ground with a thud; blood spatter and grey matter hitting the ground. Sunstreaker didn’t flinch but his battle protocols snapped on line, whirling to life fast and hard, targeting systems tracking all movement from the knot of wannabe soldiers, identifying them as hostiles.

The gun swung back around, a mad glint in Dennis’ eyes. “Anyone else want to let her go?” 

The others blinked, someone snorted and a course of ‘noes’ and ‘nopes’ went up among them, an assortment of weapons rising. Sunstreaker’s targeting systems flared red, counting the dozen or so threats. 

“Good.” Came the sneering voice, one that reminded Sunstreaker of a former gladiator auctioneer, setting his denta on edge. “Stop moving Danny or I’ll fucking blow your head off and sell your pal here for scrap!” 

Rage bubbled hotly from Sunstreaker’s spark, welling high like a volcano about to erupt. How dare this pathetic little meat sack speak of him like that! Danny froze as her belly tightened in fear, biting her bottom lip hard enough to leave an imprint of her imperfect teeth. 

Tightening his grip on his weapon, Sunstreaker snarled. “Get lost. Danny’s coming with me and we are going home.” 

Dennis’ eyes brightened. “Home? Is that where Callie is?” 

“You won’t find her.” Danny sneered as she turned to face him, taking another step back towards Sunstreaker. “You won’t fucking find her. I swear to God, you’ll never get close.” 

Dennis snarled, taking another step towards her and Danny took another step back; all the while Sunstreaker found himself frowning as he thought she shouldn’t be giving up ground like that.

“Callie belongs to me! TO ME!” The gun waved around as the fury in Dennis’ eyes turned to madness. 

Sunstreaker didn’t have to see Danny’s face as rage clouded her brown eyes as he now knew her anger well enough to recognize it without seeing her face; a fact that startled the frontliner. 

“Callie is an adult who belongs to no one.” She sneered. “And that is the one thing you could never wrap your pathetic, little, shitty mind around. What she ever saw in you, I’ll never know!” 

Dennis, the madness still in his dark eyes, managed a cocky grin. “It must be my big cock.” 

Much to Sunstreaker’s surprise Danny remained calm, her shoulders drawing back as she stood a little taller. “Funny. Your brother said the same thing before I gutted him like a fish.” 

The noise that left Dennis was inhuman, and Sunstreaker knew just by the way Danny stood, by the cock of her hips that she was smirking at him. That infuriating smirk she had when she knew she had one up on you. 

Sunstreaker felt himself sigh, knowing what was about to come. 

The gun went off with a bang and Sunstreaker felt his lines run cold when he heard Danny yelp as she dropped to the ground, grasping her upper arm. Battle protocols entered their final stages, making everything seem slower and Sunstreaker saw Dennis point his gun at Danny again, finger on the trigger. 

The Autobot didn’t think, he simply reacted; the empty garbage can was thrown with a gentle flick of his wrist, landing over Dennis, trapping the human inside just as he pulled the trigger, the bullet ricocheting, pinging off the metal walls of the dumpster, ending with a yelp from the human trapped inside. 

The others raised their weapons and Sunstreaker felt himself rolling forward, reacting before thinking about what he was doing, circling Danny with his thicker armour and metal hide. The bullets pinged harmlessly off his armour, denting and scratching it, but no real damage being done, keeping her fleshy body safe.   
Raising just enough to lift his blaster while still shielding her, Sunstreaker pulled the trigger, the blast of energy and heat ripping through the knot of men. They evaporated with a hiss of energy and the first part of a scream; their tiny fleshy lungs not able to draw in the air needed for a proper screech. 

The smoke rose from where they once stood, the stench of burnt flesh filled the area. Growling, Sunstreaker stood and easing his frame from the ground he pushed himself to his pedes. Frowning at the smoking, black soot of the ground, Sunstreaker looked down his nose as he dusted himself off. He felt nothing for the fleshy beings he had just evaporated, not really. He knew their kind, knew what they would have done to Danny had they been given the chance. These were the same kind of mech who had hurt him in the pits. 

The human still knelt on the ground, face ashy white as she held onto her damaged limb where the bullet grazed her upper arm, her jaw moving up and down like a fish out of water as she stared up at him with brown eyes dark and wide. 

Icy cobalt optics glowered down at her, the anger and hate returning now that the threat had been neutralized. 

Danny licked her lips, blinking several times as she tried to form coherent words, his own gaze growing colder, his anger growing. The hurt he had felt just moments ago from his memories, fading as he forgot the pain he had endured now that the stark reminder was obliterated.

Suddenly shooting to her feet, hands shaking, Danny moved to walk away, trying to get around the massive frontliner and his bristling armour. 

Sunstreaker snarled, blaster held firmly in his servo as he side stepped to block her in place. “Enough.” he snarled. “I am not chasing you another Primus damned block in this shit hole of a city. We are going home.” 

Danny blinked up at him, blood seeping through her dirty fingers, staining her jacket. A sudden thumping as Dennis screamed and yelled from inside the garbage bin made Danny flinch and step towards Sunstreaker. 

Biting her lip hard, Danny nodded. “Yea. Okay, let’s go home.” 

Her voice was small, her eyes wide and bright as she stared at the bin and the danger it contained. 

“Good.” Sunstreaker snarled, nodding away from the blackened, scorched earth. “Let’s go.” He turned to leave, his tone cold and hard. He was done, one hundred percent done with this city, and he was ready to return a hero. 

“I can’t leave yet.” Came Danny’s voice, again so small, still in shock. 

Sunstreaker was in no mood for it. “Why the Pit not!?” His voice took a nasty edge, a hard tone. 

Despite her pale face and pounding heart, she didn’t flinch back from him. “The motel I was crashing in isn’t far from here. That’s where I was heading when,” she paused. “It’s where I was heading. My satchel is there.” 

“What is so important about this bloody bag?” 

Danny shrugged. “There’s nearly five grand in cash in that satchel. I’m not losing it now for some maid who cleans the room to find it.” 

Cobalt optics narrowed, handsome face scrunching in an annoyed sneer. “I take you to this motel and you’ll come home?” 

Overly bright eyes blinked up at him. “And.” 

“And!?” 

“And we swing by Brandon’s junk yard to get my last payment. Bastard still owes me money.” 

The Autobot’s optics narrowed into a glare at the small human by his pedes, her face still an ashy white, shoulders shaking but hiked high. 

“I take you to get this bag of yours and then to the junk yard, then we go back to base, just like that, no more anything.” He spat, tone hard, his blaster creaking under the pressure of his grip. 

Danny jerked a nod, the trembling of her body slowing a little. She took a half step towards him with a slam of her fist against the garbage bin, the hollow bang echoing loudly. 

Snarling again the golden twin transformed, his alt mode now back to his Lamborghini form, one he was glad to have back; he missed the power the V-12 engine it had. 

The passenger door swung open to her, Sunstreaker’s voice hard and angry. “Get in.” he spat. 

This time Danny didn’t argue. 

()()()

The trip to the little motel that Danny had been using as her room to sleep in was blessedly uneventful. Danny was silent, besides giving instructions on how to get to the little flea filled motel that looked like it hadn’t been cleaned in years. 

Her skin still pale from shock and distress, she had slipped from his alt mode and his armour settled comfortably once again in the Lamborghini body as he let her out. He tracked her as she stumbled once to the low, flat building that was only one floor high, and he watched her as she raced around her room, pausing only a moment longer in the bathroom to wrap the flesh wound to her upper arm before she raced to collect the rest of her scant things. 

Her arm likely needed stitches, Sunstreaker mused to himself but he found himself unsympathetic to her pain. He just wanted to get the little glitch home, nothing more. 

Danny raced from the motel room, jogging back to where he waited with his door still open in anticipation of her return. Satchel firmly around her upper body she slipped back into his passenger seat, the door closing the moment he felt her body weight settle on his seat. 

Squealing his back tires and fishtailing for a moment out of pure amusement, Sunstreaker took off again; Danny simply grasping the ‘oh shit!’ bar above her head and calmly riding out the fishtail. 

The red head glanced at the seat belt that hung helpless by her shoulder, brown eyes glancing down as she bit her lip. “Hey Sunstreaker.” 

“What now?” the Autobot snapped. He only intended to go see that little twerp Brandon once more so Danny could get paid then they were getting out of this shitty city and back to the Ark. He wanted to see Sideswipe and Prowl. 

Danny paused for a moment, her breath catching in her tiny fleshy lungs. “I’m sorry I cut your seat belts.” She paused. “And I’m sorry I shot you in the face.” Her voice grew quieter. “And I’m sorry I set you on fire.” Sunstreaker snarled and Danny flinched. “And I’m sorry I smashed your side view mirror, and that you got into a crash.” 

“And you blew my cover.” He spat. 

Danny winced. “Yeah, that too.” 

Sunstreaker heaved a sigh, a snarl on the end of the clearing of his intakes. “Whatever.”

Danny looked down, fist tight around the oh-shit handle. “And, thanks for saving me, and,” she paused with an awkward shrug. “stuff.”

Sunstreaker huffed in annoyance. “You’re welcome.” 

The human sighed, her small fleshy hand still firm on the handle at his roof as she looked out of the window at the blurred scenery. The silence between them was thick and awkward; Sunstreaker’s unforgiving anger and Danny unsure what to say wreaking havoc on the space between them. 

Gathering her courage, the human took a deep breath and glanced up. “Why’d you do it? Come back, that is.” 

Sunstreaker snorted. “I needed you alive.” 

“No. I mean…I know you need me alive. I mean, why did you come back?” 

If he could have looked at her he would have given her a questioning look, instead his engine suddenly snarled and he demanded “What?” 

Danny’s lips pressed together, nearly white in how tightly she clamped them together. “No, I mean the first time I,” she paused with a sigh. “When I shot you, why did you stay? Why not just go home?” 

Sunstreaker snarled. “I was ordered to bring you home.” 

“So?” Danny shrugged. “I’ve seen you and Side’s break plenty of rules.” 

The growl shook the plating of the frontliner. “Sideswipe breaks the rules, I get dragged into it.” 

“Yeah, well, I’ve seen you break plenty of rules. Why listen now?” 

Sunstreaker snarled. She didn’t know that he couldn’t disappoint Prowl or his twin. She didn’t need to know about his insecurities, or the fact that it hurt him that his twin had chosen to hang out with her rather than him. “You wouldn’t understand.” 

Danny rolled her eyes. “Try me.” She snapped back. Glaring at the Autobot’s steering wheel when silence met her, so she continued. “I mean, you won! Why bother chase me all over Vegas? Why not just go home?” 

“What do you mean, I won?” Sunstreaker snarled, his anger returning. 

Danny shrugged. “You got Sideswipe. You had him all to yourself and you could have smoothed over whatever was bothering you and been fine. I was gone.” She   
shrugged again as she looked back out of the window, arm laying along the widow edge, the missing glass allowing the sharp wind to mess her hair. “I mean, he always talks about you.” 

There was another pause, the awkward silence growing thick again between them until Sunstreaker broke the silence. He needed to know what his twin, the only being in the universe that he had ever loved, had said about him. “He does?” 

His voice was gruff, the same old insecurities rising; he never thought he was good enough to be Sideswipe’s other half. He was the one who wasn’t supposed to exist. 

The human in his cabin snorted. “Well yeah, all the time.” There was a half grin which slicked her face, a little color finally coming back. “He told me how you once jumped Starscream, back when you were enemies, and sent him into a nose dive that had him out cold for days.” 

“It was a few hours.” Sunstreaker muttered back, not liking that his twin had been telling the human stories. “Sideswipe likes to exaggerate.” 

There was another pause from the woman as she bit her lower lip in nervousness. “Is it true that you once escaped a Decepticon brig, punched Astrotrain in the mouth and stole a small star ship to escape back to Autobot territory.” 

Sunstreaker snorted. He had also been beaten in that Decepticon brig by Astrotrain for days, starved, knowing that help was not coming, and tortured by Shockwave. Optimus could not risk the lives of his mechs for the life of a single soldier and Sunstreaker wouldn’t want them too either. He could take care of himself, and had escaped on his own; and he hadn’t just punched Astrotrain. He had lain down such a beating that the triple-changer hadn’t been seen for vorns. 

“Yeah.” He said simply. “That is true.” She didn’t need to know all the grisly details of his imprisonment and escape. 

Her grin widened, an excitement that almost reminded him of Sideswipe’s filled her brown eyes. “That’s kind of awesome.” 

Sunstreaker grunted. He didn’t want to talk to her, he didn’t want to know her; she had caused him annoyance and pain over the last few days, sparked fights with his twin. 

He didn’t want to be her friend. 

“No one ever saves me.” She said suddenly, still watching the night sky as they made their way to the scrap yard. Sunstreaker ignored her. “Thank you.” 

That time she sounded like she meant it and the frontliner heard himself mutter “You’re welcome.” bitterly under his breath. 

“He talks about you too.” Sunstreaker admitted, annoyed at the fact, wondering why he was telling her this. 

“He does?” 

“Yeah. Said you told him that you’re first car you stole was a Porsche.”

Danny laughed. “Yeah. I knew I’d never own one, so when I got the offer to steal it I though why the hell not?” 

“And don’t you feel bad for stealing?” 

The thief shrugged. “I did what I had to do to survive, and besides,” she stretched, popping the bones in her spine. “I only stole from those who could afford it.   
Rich asses whose insurance will cover the cost.” She shrugged again, leaning back a little further into the seat, legs stretched out in front of her. “Sides thought we’d be friends if we’d ever got along.” 

The frontliner fought back the snort that threatened to rise. “He’s said the same to me. Told me I was too stubborn and I needed to,” the golden mech paused, sighing in disdain, “that I needed to calm down.” 

Danny shrugged. “I could probably,” She paused with her own sigh, “cool it myself.” The femme out of habit, turned her head to look at the driver side seat as she bit her bottom lip. “We…could start over. Try this whole getting along thing again.” She shifted when Sunstreaker said nothing. “It would make Sideswipe happy.” 

“That’s blackmail.” Sunstreaker dead panned, his spark only mildly soothed by the fact his twin still loved him enough to speak so highly of him, and Danny laughed. 

“Yeah. But that doesn’t make it any less true.” And the human grinned when the Autobot didn’t say no to her words. 

()()() 

Sunstreaker felt he should not have been nearly as amused as was watching Danny scowl at Brandon. The dark haired man had his small head down while he quickly transferred the money he owed her, one of his accomplices behind her, chewing bubble gum like a cow. 

“Can’t believe you fuckers knew that Dennis was in town and didn’t tell me.” She hissed for the hundredth time in the last ten minutes, and Sunstreaker felt his smirk grow. 

“Well.” Brandon said ducking a little lower. “If we had told you the truth, you’d have never come back to Vegas.” 

Danny growled softly like a wild animal, her rage clear in her eyes. “Of course I’d not have come back to this shithole!” 

She moved as though to strike the taller human, to swat him upside the head when his companion behind him snarled, causing Danny to turn her head. The man lifted his shirt, just ever so slightly, the handle of a small gun sticking out from the waist line. 

Danny made a face. “Please. I’ve been chased around for nearly a week and a half by him,” her thumb jerked towards Sunstreaker as she snarled at the man at her back. “You really think your little pea shooter is going to scare me?” 

She turned back to Brandon, looming over his shoulder to ensure her money went through smoothly. “Seriously,” she snapped to the man behind her. “Go fuck yourself.” 

He blinked at her as he lowered his shirt, head canting as though he were not quite sure how to take such a comment, knowing he couldn’t hurt her with the massive Autobot crouching by the broken bay door; Sunstreaker smirked, glad it was not he that Danny’s annoyance was directed at for once.

Brandon suddenly looked up, face pale as he met her annoyed gaze. “All done. The money we owe is in your account.” 

“Fantastic.” She snapped at him, brown eyes hard. 

“We can go now?” Sunstreaker asked from where he squatted, arms crossed over his chest, bored. 

Spinning away from Brandon and his comrade, Danny flounced from the garage, nearly skipping as she passed Sunstreaker and into the warm dessert night. 

“Yup.” She called over her shoulder with a smirk as the Autobot pushed to his pedes.

He caught up to her in a few short steps, blue optics narrowed when he expected her to bolt. She spun around to walk backwards, her face beaming when she looked up at him. “Despite everything, I’ve got all the money I need to buy the horses back. Don’t know what I’m going to tell Epps about his bike, but I can get Callie and Lucy’s horses.” 

“That’s,” The frontliner paused as he glowered down at her. “Awesome.” Sarcasm dripped from his voice as he narrowed his gaze. He was tired and ready to return to the Ark. 

“Oh come on, even you had to admit to having fun.” 

“Right, because getting shot in the face and being set on fire was fun.” He glowered down at her, optic ridge raised as they stepped out into the street. 

Danny rolled her eyes. “Oh come on, I said I was sorry.” Sunstreaker opened his mouth to argue, when the little femme continued. “BUT! Even you have to admit, it was pretty fun racing through Vegas before that cop slammed into you, right?” 

Sunstreaker’s optics narrowed. Whether or not he had fun before that cop slammed into him was irrelevant. If Prowl found out he had been racing he’d be on extra duties for a month, again, and usually it was his twin that caused that to happen. 

“Right?” She asked again, her eyes lighting up with enjoyment when she thought back to how much fun it had been to race through the streets of Vegas again.   
Sunstreaker shook his helm at her, heaving a sigh of annoyance. He looked away with a huff, blue optics happening to catch a black motorcycle parked down the road and the frontliner slowed to a stop, cobalt optics narrowed on it while an uneasy feeling started to fill him. 

“I’ve seen that bike before.” He growled suddenly, optics narrowed on the motorcycle. 

Slowing to a stop next to him Danny frowned and her brow crinkled as her head canted, pony tail swinging. “So have I. I saw it that day you blew your cover.” 

“You mean you attacked me and made me blow my cover.” He corrected her, blue optics still narrowed on the dark motorcycle. 

Danny snorted. “Whatever man.” The smile fell from her face as she looked up at him. “Do you think we’ve been followed?” 

Holding his gaze on the offending vehicle, Sunstreaker felt his battle protocols rise. “Stay here.” He ordered as he took a few steps forward, his usually sheathed claws extending from his digits. 

Danny shifted nervously but for once did as she was ordered, her small hands pressing into her thighs, rubbing against her jeans as her eyes narrowed. She remained tense, a little hesitant as Sunstreaker approached the harmless looking motorcycle. 

His optics shifted up and down the empty street, the warm desert air kicking up the dirt, the granules of sand joining the others in his joints. The sand made him itch and shift uncomfortably; he hated the desert, he decided then and there. 

Turning after he reached the motorcycle, Sunstreaker was going to shrug off the vehicle’s presence as a coincidence. There was no rider to be seen and there were plenty of black motorcycles around that this one was unlikely the one that had been stalking Danny and himself since they arrived in Vegas. 

Claws sheathing, servo perched to his hip, a bored retort was already forming on his glossa when something hit him from behind; two steel prongs implanting themselves into his lower back, punching a hole through his thick armour, electricity suddenly coursing through his frame from the source of his wounds, dropping Sunstreaker to his knees, his optics whiting out in pain. 

Vaguely he heard Danny screaming over the pain as the current swept through his frame. Servos shaking and denta gritting so hard he could taste shards of metal that broke off, Sunstreaker forced himself to his hands and knees, his finned helm swinging to find Danny. 

For a brief moment the pain stopped as the current died out, leaving Sunstreaker on all fours, barely able to stay up as he panted hard.   
Danny lay on the ground, a large man dressed in black pressing her face first into the broken road as she thrashed and screamed, fighting as hard as she could to dislodge the larger body. Behind her another dark lump already lay in the road, groaning about how ‘the dumb bitch broke his nose.’ 

Cobalt optics, wide with pain met brown eyes that were bright with fear. He didn’t know why he did it, maybe because the look on Danny’s face was the same look of terror Sideswipe used to have when the pit bosses would drag him away to be abused by paying customers, but Sunstreaker found himself reaching out to her, to offer even a smidgen of protection despite his own hurt. 

Grunting with effort, Danny managed to dislodge one of her arms, stretching the limb out as far as she could as though she could reach across the impossible distance to him. 

Current suddenly coursed through Sunstreaker’s body again, a cry of pain leaving the frontliner’s mouth, ragged and filled with static as he fell face first into the dessert floor. Danny screamed his name once more and then Sunstreaker blacked out. 

()()()

Cobalt blue optics blinked online and Sunstreaker fought the annoyed groan that built at the back of his throat; everything hurt. 

His mouth felt dry and he had to work his mouth slightly to build up enough oral lubrication for him to swallow easily. He could hear voices, muffled and soft all around him and the celling he was staring at was bleached white. It smelt too clean, sterile even, like a surgical ward. No one was speaking to him and he hoped any of the humans in the room hadn’t noticed he was online yet. 

Squirming on the slab of hard metal they had him on, Sunstreaker tried to see how much room he had to work with; his wrists and ankles were shackled to the table he lay on, his knees were bound too and his shoulders had some kind of clamp around them. 

The frontliner took a deep vent, calming his senses while he sent out a distressed ping to his comrades, only to be met with an error message. Frowning, the frontliner opened the bond with his twin, dismay taking his spark when he found Sideswipe’s side of the bond firmly shut, the crimson mech likely still furious with him. 

Heaving a draught of air through his vents, Sunstreaker quickly evaluated his situation; he was trapped in a building, likely with humans. He was immobile and had no idea where he was or what kind of armory theses humans had. Also, he had no idea of Danny’s whereabouts or her status. Relaxing into the hard metal further, the golden Autobot released an annoyed huff of air through his nasal structure. All he had to do was escape these confines, find Danny and get out of the building; compared to the last week or so that should be no big deal. 

“A marvellous example to be sure. Such a feat of engineering.” A male voice, high and loud cut through the other muffled voices around him. “Such wonders this piece of machinery will tell us.” 

Sunstreaker frowned. He was not just some piece of machinery! He was a living being, just as alive as the owner of that voice and Danny. To think otherwise would just simply be cruel; it would be calling him a mindless drone, no better than a slave once again. 

Spark churning, Sunstreaker twisted his helm to find the owner, his dark optics falling onto the back of a small, round human with white hair, a tall woman was next to him, her brunette hair shining over her white lab coat. 

“And to think,” the man went on, not noticing how Sunstreaker was awake, “it chased you all over Vegas, you poor dear, I can hardly imagine the fright it must have given you!” 

It was Danny’s voice that answered, airy and nonchalant. “Yes, well, as you said it’s only a machine, it must be controlled from an outside source. It is no more terrifying than a car.” 

There was a course of laughter and the same male voice responded. “Right you are my girl, right you are. Now, I believe that this machine was built by aliens, and it is being used as in a plot to take over the world. And, and I believe that there are others, here on Earth, just like it. We’ve been following a few others just like this one and the one we are especially interested in is a red Lamborghini.” 

Fear pierced Sunstreaker’s spark and his optics paled with distress. Sideswipe. They were talking about Sideswipe! 

“You managed to lure one of these things out into the open once, do you think you could lure our red friend as well?” 

Panic took Sunstreaker at the man’s words and he found himself holding his vents while Danny hesitated to respond. “I guess…I could.” 

Another course of laughter erupted from the group, some even going as far as to clap, saying how brave she was. 

Traitor! Sunstreaker snarled internally, his hatred for humanity doubling. 

A powerful V-12 engine suddenly roared to life as anger ripped through Sunstreaker, the ever growing need to protect his twin shoving all other thought away.   
The room fell silent at the noise while above him on a platform, the round man and his brunette counterpart turned to face him, as well as Danny who was flanked by two large guards. 

Delight lit the man’s face, a chubby hand pointing down at him. “Look! Look at how it responds to verbal cues. Fascinating isn’t?” 

The woman next to the round man nodded, pushing her thick black glasses back up her nose. “Yes Dr. Zanza, it is.” 

She grinned down at him, her smile sharp and predatory and Sunstreaker found himself snarling up at her, straining against his bonds so that he could crush her fleshy body for daring to leer at him like that. 

Zanza laughed. “My, my Dr. Hemmen, it certainly does not like you, does it?” 

Hemmen suddenly relaxed, turning her attention back to her partner, her smile softening. “I do not believe it can feel, so it cannot dislike me, Doctor.” 

Dr. Zanza laughed again. “Right you are. Ah well, come ladies, let us toast our good fortune then Alice can begin taking it apart.” 

Sunstreaker felt horror creep into his lines and his engine revved hard again in his chest. Dr. Hemmen, Alice, smiled as she gestured for the older man to take the   
stairs before her. “Oh yes. I cannot wait to dive into its circuitry and see what makes it tick.” 

The excitement in her voice made Sunstreaker feel nauseous and he doubled his efforts to escape, straining and struggling against the bonds. “If you fucking touch me,” he suddenly roared, stilling all the humans. “I’ll fucking kill you! Every last one of you!” 

Instead of being afraid Dr. Zanza looked amazed. “Fascinating. It heard what I said and reacted violently.” A smile spread across his face. “It heard me say that we are going to take it apart and it responded accordingly.” 

Sunstreaker snarled, his blinding rage building. If he ever got lose from his bindings he was going to kill every human in this Primus forsaken building. “Of course I’m responding you idiot!” The condescending tone usually had humans ducking their heads. 

Alice Hemmen smiled. “I can’t wait to see what the inside of its head looks like.” Her voice sounded far off, a breath of excitement. 

The Autobot’s engine roared with fury, the fear creeping back in. 

The two doctors turned their heads down as they quickly chatted about the time frame of when they were to begin. He heard the female say two hours and Sunstreaker felt his tanks churn. 

Desperate, Sunstreaker caught site of Danny being led away and he called out to her, his spark burning in shame at having to call for her help. “Danny! Danny wait! Don’t let them do this!” 

This time it was Hemmen who stopped, her dark eyes narrowing on Sunstreaker with a frown. “It learned your name.” her eyes shifted from Sunstreaker to the human at her side. “Why was it chasing you in the first place?” 

Danny managed a shrug, her skin pale once more, face blank as she stared back into the doctor’s eyes with her own cold, dead brown eyes. “I don’t know.” She said simply. “It just showed up and started following me.” 

The older woman narrowed her gaze on Danny. The hard glare usually had the youngsters ducking for cover but Danny merely narrowed her own gaze and pushed her shoulders back.

“I’m sure,” Dr. Zanza’s voice cut through the tense silence. “That once we crack into the thing’s computer, all our answers will be found.” 

Again, Sunstreaker felt horror rise from his chest, fear and anger and helplessness started to leak into his mind. 

The humans began to head back for the door once more while Danny was pushed along to follow the two doctors. 

“Danny! Danny wait, please!” He ground from between clenched denta. 

Danny didn’t look back and besides balling her limp hands into fists, she gave no outward response to his cry of help as she silently followed the other humans   
out of the room, leaving him to his fate. 

Something worse than the shame, fear or the helplessness suddenly filled Sunstreaker. A feeling that caught him off guard and it left him momentarily stunned and hurt, gasping for air even. 

Betrayal.

After all the crap Danny had spouted about wanting to be his friend, how she wanted to start over with him was thrown back into his face, and he had been stupid   
enough to believe her words; and he had wanted to start over, he had wanted to try, for Sideswipe. 

But look at where wanting to trust humans had gotten him. 

Betrayal and grief took him for a moment and all Sunstreaker could do was bellow out his rage as the doors closed behind Danny. 

TBC…


	8. Hero's come in size 5'7"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sunstreaker fears he will be torn apart, literally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Important Information  
> “Blah” Speaking  
> ::Blah:: comm. link  
> ‘Blah’ bonded speech  
> ‘Blah’ thinking
> 
> Astrosecond- 2.5 earth Seconds  
> Klik- 150 earth seconds/ 2.5 earth Minutes  
> Orn- 150 earth minutes/ 2.5 earth Hours  
> Joor- 60 earth hours/2.5 earth Days  
> Metacycle- 17.5 earth days/2.5 earth Weeks  
> Vorn- 10 earth weeks/2.5 earth months  
> Stellercycle-30 earth months/2.5 years  
> Breem-slang for a moment/minute.  
> Night Cycle: star down to star up  
> Day Cycle: Star up to star down
> 
> Authors Note: Yay! Another update! It’s like whoa! 
> 
> Thank you to everyone who reviewed and commented on my last chapter, your reviews keep me going  
> 
> And as always, thank you to Darkness_Rising for betaing  
> 
> Disclaimer: I own only my OC’s, nothing else.

Laying on his back in the dark, arms and legs stretched and bound to the hard metal table, Sunstreaker felt his spark roll in his chest as panic threatened to overrun his processor.

Squirming uncomfortably he tested the strength of his shackles for the hundredth time and once again found them to be firm and locked tight, but the battered frontliner still strained against them, hoping and praying for a weakness in the metal, only to be disappointed in his lack of strength.

Growling in frustration Sunstreaker tried to thrash, desperate to escape as a black pit of despair bubbled from his center, finally worming its way into his processor. A wordless scream echoed around the dark and empty room, gold frame tense and hot in the frontliner's desperate attempt to escape.

Ping after ping was returned with an error message and Sideswipe's half of the bond was blocked tight, no amount of pushing, prodding or bashing at it forcing it to drop.

Sagging into the table Sunstreaker panted through gritted denta; he was not one to give up, he was one to fight to the bitter end, the one who would go kicking and screaming into the night and take as many as he could on his way down.

_Sideswipe._

Despair took his spark at the thought of his twin, his twin who foolishly believed in Danny and thought her to be his friend. But she would lead him here so that he could suffer the same fate as he. That was of course if Sunstreaker even survived what these humans were going to do to him. But if he didn't his death would drag his twin down with him and Sideswipe would die, and that would be a far better fate than Sideswipe living through yet another betrayal like he was; it would be an easier death, peaceful. Sideswipe would be amongst friends and caretakers. Prowl would be with him as his spark faded, Jazz too. His twin would be made comfortable and would simply fade into the night.

His brother wouldn't be ripped apart like he was about to be.

But if Sunstreaker's spark did survive this process, did manage to cling to the life he had fought so bloody hard to keep, Sideswipe would be lured to the same fate.

Cobalt optics off lining, their protective covers sliding over the glass, Sunstreaker took a deep vent and prayed to their God, one whom he had never been on particularly good terms with and often doubted existed, and prayed that he would die a horrible death if it meant Sideswipe's passing would be eased.

Sunstreaker would go down swinging, kicking and screaming, and cursing, he would not allow these humans to see him weep or break. Yet despite this resolve while he waited in that cold and empty room, all alone with the guilt of getting his beloved twin killed weighing down on him, a single drop of optical lubrication slipped from beneath his closed lid.

It tracked down the side of his damaged face plates, pooling next to his audio fin, and Sunstreaker silently mourned the loss of his freedom and the future he would never have.

()()()

The sun was sinking low over the empty fields in Nebraska, the reds and oranges splashing across the cloudless sky. It was pretty, the kind of weather that seekers would love to fly through and play.

It was peaceful and quiet.

" _What do you mean you've sold them?!"_

Or at least it was, Prowl mused to himself as he watched Thundercracker hiss at the human whose farm he had crash landed in not all that long ago.

The farmer, who was plastered flat against his truck, kept throwing his wide eyed gaze from Thundercracker's bristling armoured frame to Skywarp who was not even bothering to hide the fact he was laughing, to Epps who was supposed to be a mediator and not looking _that_ amused, and finally to Prowl who was sighing in a sort of irritated defeat.

This was supposed to be a simple adventure, head out to the farm and let Epps do the talking, get the beasts and teleport back to the _Ark_ to surprise Lucy and Callie with the horses. Until the farmer told Epps he had sold Cinderella and Patches to a neighbouring farm and Thundercracker's seemingly endless patience snapped.

The blue seeker always had an apparent bottomless well of patience and restraint, the only one out of the trio who had joined the Autobot's who had never caused Prowl any sort of problem, but he had finally reached his limit.

When Thundercracker finally did snap, he _snapped_ and went all out; all the pent up annoyance and anger coming out in a rush of emotion in a spectacular show of a tantrum that was overly dramatic to the situation.

Skywarp found his tantrums, as rare as they were, hilarious and did nothing but encourage his mate to blow a gasket, which only served to annoy Prowl more. They weren't even supposed to be interacting with the farmer, which was why they had brought Epps along to act as a mediator.

Taking another deep vent, door wings hitching higher in authority, Prowl straightened up and mentally prepared himself to take control of the situation. Face cold and indifferent, the Autobot second in command marched past the laughing purple seeker, past the snickering human and hoped that Thundercracker had enough respect for him to calm if he asked him to.

Closing the distance between himself and the bristling seeker Prowl pressed a servo to the taller mech's shoulder, drawing furious crimson optics to his smaller form. A grim look and a half snarl met Prowl but the black and white mech gave the seeker a stern look. "Stand down Thundercracker." The seeker opened his mouth to tell what was technically his commander off when Prowl cut him off and continued. "Allow me to speak with him. I may…" the Praxian paused briefly, "I may yield better results than you will."

Thundercracker scowled, his ire easily read by all. "Fine." He grunted between gritted denta. "But all this work on the barn will be useless without the horses!" The door winger held the crimson gaze of the taller mech, trying to look down his nose despite having to look _up_ at the seeker.

A jovial laugh rang behind them, Skywarp's amusement easily heard in his voice. "Oh TC, it's so cute when you get annoyed and start using high Vosarian speech patterns." Thundercracker's wing twitched in annoyance, his digits curling and uncurling into fists as his mate continued. "It's kinda hot!"

The older seeker's wing twitched again in his annoyance, his dark optics narrowing in irritation at the whole situation.

Moving around Prowl, Thundercracker went to stand with his mate as the Autobot knelt before the terrified human. "Mr." he paused as he quickly ran another search on the human's name, ensuring he had it right. "Tleato. A young woman and her little sister sold you a pair of horses a number of weeks ago, a pair of horses that you in turn sold." The man nodded his head, his terrified eyes still wide in shock as Prowl continued. "Selling the horses was completely within your right, of course, but we are interested in purchasing the horses, legally. Would you be so kind as to give us the names of those you sold the horses to?"

The man nodded, face still pale in distress and Prowl found himself wondering if he had actually be able to function enough to give him at least a name and address.

Mouth working in silence for a moment, the farmer Callie had sold her horses to found his voice. "You…you won't hurt them, will you?"

Prowl's helm shook no slowly. "Not at all. My role in this misadventure is to ensure that this process proceeds smoothly and legally."

Tleato nodded again, still afraid of the massive beings around him. "M-my neighbour. My neighbour down the road…t-to the left wanted them for riding horses. He should still have them."

Prowl nodded. "Thank you Mr. Tleato, your help is greatly appreciated."

Again, eyes wide in shock, face still pale, the man nodded, still plastered against the white truck at his back.

Pushing to his pedes Prowl turned back to the seekers while behind him he could hear Epps telling the man to 'not mention this to any one' since he would look 'completely crazy' and this would be 'better for everyone.'

The sergeant jogged over to the Cybertronians, crossing his arms over his broad chest with a grin. "Well that went smoothly." He said sarcastically, a wide smirk spread across his handsome face.

Skywarp barked a laugh while both Thundercracker and Prowl attempted to suppress a sigh, failing to do so, causing Skywarp to laugh harder and Robert to begin to chuckle alongside him.

_'Well,'_ Prowl mused to himself as his cold, blue optics shifted from the chuckling seeker to the giggling human. _'At least they're not threatening each other.'_

It wasn't much of a step towards peace, but at least it was a start.

"Guess we'd better head on down the road and go scare the next neighbour then?" Robert asked, his grin ever widening.

Prowl's optics narrowed at the prospect as Skywarp's joyous laugh echoed loudly around them. "Pit yes! Oh! Oh! Can I be the one to approach first? The noise that human made when TC landed was priceless."

The conversation of going to the next farm to look for Callie and Lucy's horses seemed to calm the usually reserved blue seeker, his armour shifting to a neutral position as his wings lowered to calm stance. Thundercracker, at least, had the good sense to control his emotions when dealing with humans.

"No." Came Prowl's firm reply, cutting through any plans that the youngest seeker may have had to frighten more humans. "Thundercracker _broke_ cover for no reason other than an emotional response."

The seeker frowned, his wings hiking back up. "But…"

"No buts. The fact is you broke our number one rule. Stay out of sight. Stay hidden. Epps was the one to bargain with the farmer, not you."

Thundercracker kept his wings high, a sure sign of his deep annoyance, but at least he was controlling himself once more. "I apologize Prowl, but after all the work we put into this project if we are unable to acquire the horses, what good is it?"

Prowl brushed the response off, knowing the seeker was emotionally tied to the situation. Had there been anyone else who could have come with him Prowl would have taken any other option. However as it was, Thundercracker had been the one who knew where Callie had sold her horse.

"Regardless, you still broke the rules and when we return to the _Ark_ a suitable punishment will be served."

The seekers stiffened, armour tightening around their protoforms, and Skywarp's ruby optics narrowed and darkened. Taken aback from the reaction it took Prowl a moment to realize the reason behind it; a punishment on board the _Nemesis_ was likely to be much more violent and over the top than anything the Autobots would subject their own people to.

The door winger quickly clarified their version of a punishment. "A minor stint in the brig, a day or two at the most when we return."

The affect was almost instantaneous, armour deflated and wings lowered. Prowl had heard the stories, heard what Megatron did to his own mechs when they failed him. It would take time before the Decepticons who had joined the Autobot camp, and any others who dared to flee, to come to the understanding that Optimus and his upper command did not go out of their way to cause pain to their mechs.

They were not Megatron.

"Maybe we can just steal the horses. You know, teleport in, grab 'em and get out?" Skywarp offered. "Then we won't have to deal with _any_ humans."

Prowl heaved a sigh. _'He's basically a youngling. A youngling who grew up a Decepticon, he doesn't know better.'_ That had become Prowl's mantra when dealing with Skywarp; the purple seeker simply didn't see how that was wrong. "No, Skywarp we are not stealing the horses back."

"Well, why not? Our need is greater than theirs." The teleported scoffed, arms crossing over his chest.

"Because we are better than that." Prowl said simply, drawing a confused look to the purple seeker. "We will purchase the horses through legal channels. After all, if we were to steal them we would be doing a disservice to those humans who purchased the horses. They would lose out on the money they spent on them."

Brown furrowing, Skywarp tapped his chin. "But what if they refuse? Then can we steal the horses?"

Prowl blinked and took a moment to gather himself. "We shall cross that bridge when we get to it."

Delight spread across Skywarp's face. "So yes then!"

"I did not say that."

"But you didn't say no!" Skywarp was quick to counter. "You guys always do bad things in the name of the greater good. Which is you know, kinda necessary." The purple seeker's grin grew. "And this is kinda part of the greater good right! I mean, this will make the humans happy and boost moral!"

Stoic as ever, Prowl merely blinked at the younger seeker. His wings did however, draw back and tilt upwards; something that both seekers recognized as amusement. "As I said Skywarp, we shall cross that bridge when we come to it. In the meantime let us go speak with the neighbours. Hopefully Epps will have an easier time trying to speak with them."

The human stood at their feet snorted, his amused grin still firmly in place. Watching Skywarp try and run circles around Prowl was always good fun. "I wouldn't hold your breath there Prowl."

Skywarp's helm canted in confusion. "But we don't have to breathe."

()()()

Lucy giggled as Robert Epps carried her across the field, past the Aerialbots hanger and behind the seekers half built hanger; the area had been deemed off limits and at the time Callie had been too angry with Thundercracker to bother questioning the reasons.

Lucy giggled again and Callie fed off that silly excitement as William Lennox guided her over the smooth terrain. Her eyes were blind folded, as were Lucy's, and Anna was laughing as she raced between her father and his best friend.

Callie laughed too, overly aware of Will's large, rough hands on her narrow shoulders, noticing how his hands had calluses from working with them and she thought how they were usually dirty from the dusty environment they now lived in.

The blonde pushed those thoughts away quickly as she grinned, instead focusing on the surprise that Thundercracker had apparently been working on for her. Well, she had thought to herself, since he was being such an ass her gift had better be damned good!

The warm hands on Callie's shoulders pulled back gently to halt her steps and she laughed again. "So are we here now?"

Will laughed and it was Thundercracker's voice which responded happily from above. "Yes you are here."

Callie let out an amused snort and Lucy laughed again. "So this is where you've been hiding out? With my super-secret gift?"

The seeker shifted and she could hear the living armour move against itself, practically seeing his wings moving in her mind; she made a mental note to study that data pad on seekers a little more closely and memorize what wing movements meant.

"I…hope you like it." Thundercracker muttered over her, his own nervousness easily heard in his voice.

"I'm sure I will TC." Callie told him, her voice happy and content, two feelings she hadn't really felt since Danny had ran off.

The soft blind fold was pulled from her eyes and she had to blink as the dim light from the dying sun blinded her for a moment. What she saw next, she was not prepared for.

Next to her Lucy gasped, becoming still in Robert's arms as he grinned. Meanwhile Callie's hands clamped over her mouth and nose.

A paddock had seemed to appear out of nowhere and within the confines of the wooden fences, Patches and Cinderella stood grazing calmly as though nothing was amiss.

Tears sprang to Callie's eyes, welling and stinging, threatened to fall. There was something about their horses being here, being back in their lives again that seemed right. It was like something snapped back into place and a part of their world was right again; a sure sign that everything was going to turn out okay. After all, what were the chances that Cinderella and Patches would have found their way back to them?

Lucy screamed suddenly, a high happy sound that only a child could produce and she fought with Robert to be put down. The moment her tiny feet hit the dirt she darted to the paddock, pausing only long enough to grab hold of Anna to drag her along too.

Callie couldn't pull her eyes from the sight of her horse grazing peacefully as the two girls climbed through the fence and tears started to slip down her face silently, her whole body still and unmoving.

Thundercracker, who had been so excited to see Callie's reaction, suddenly felt concern creeping into his processor when she froze. Fearing he had done the wrong thing the seeker took a knee next to his human charge, his wings dropped low in concern. With his palm flat to the ground next to her, Thundercracker's helm canted. "Callie, are you alright?"

He internally cringed at how small his voice was, especially with the way Epps looked as though he was going to laugh again.

The blonde nodded, her hands still pressed over her nose and mouth, liquid streaming down her cheeks and between her fingers.

"Then why are you crying?" The confusion was starting to bleed into his voice with his uncertainty.

"Did you." Callie cleared her throat as her hands dropped down to her sides, hands quivering. She tried to speak again. "Did you do this?" Her voice was high and rough, a little squeaky.

Pausing for a moment feelings of dread surfaced, knowing that he had somehow screwed this up and had gotten it wrong, upsetting Callie more than she already was. His chest suddenly felt tight and his tanks felt oddly unsettled. "Yes." He finally replied.

Callie nodded, the color having drained from her face making her look pale, almost shell shocked. The human continued to stare in disbelief at her horse, the shock slowly starting to wear off and a small smile turned up the corner of her lips.

Turning to the massive seeker, Callie threw herself at the blue armour of Thundercracker's lower forearm, pressing into the living metal as she held on to him for dear life, boney fingers digging into transformation seams as another sob broke from her chest.

Thundercracker froze again as she sobbed out his name, her tears beginning anew.

Insecurities surfaced and Thundercracker thought for sure he had screwed up his gift. Crimson optics glanced at Lucy, who had her horse by the halter as she and Anna pet the beast's head. Lucy seemed so happy, why was Callie crying?

A distressed chirr vibrated from his engine as his knuckles brushed the top of her head; the two men were blessedly silent, although Thundercracker could feel their smirks.

" _Thank you!"_ The words came as a broken sob as Callie finally let go, the shock fading as she clung to his armour.

Worried, Thundercracker carefully detached her from his arm, pulling her to his chest and allowed her to cling to his canopy. "Callie, why are you crying?"

The seeker braced himself for the verbal tongue lashing that was about to come, could already feel himself shrinking back, waiting for the rage to hit. She had been so upset with him and they were finally getting along again, and now she was going to be upset with him again and he would have to re-think this plan of his. But then, if she was upset why did she thank him? He didn't understand, his confusion growing.

"Because I'm happy." Her erratic sobbing and panting finally began to calm down and Callie looked away, her nose running and blue eyes red and watery. "Sorry." She muttered.

Confused, Thundercracker nodded, his face contorted into a look of worry. "I don't understand, why are you crying then?"

"Because, this is really nice." She sniffed again, scrubbing at her face with the back of her hand. "I'm such an ugly crier."

A small grin spread over the seeker's face, his worry dissipating with the knowledge that Callie didn't hate him. "You're not." He reassured her, helm canting. "So, you really like this?"

"Yes." She said as she wiped the last tears from her face, still sounding stuffed up. "I love it Thundercracker." Giving her a small grin, the backs of his knuckles brushed her head again, a sign of affection. "I can't believe you found them." She sounded almost in awe.

The grin growing into a smile, Thundercracker shrugged. "I had some help. Hound and Trailbreaker helped with the barn, the Aerialbots were very interested in the horses and it was Prowl who ensured their purchase was done legally." Robert coughed from below them, drawing the seeker's attention back down to his smirking face, perfect white teeth gleaming up at him in a cheeky grin. "And Epps." He added with a grin. "Epps helped too."

The blonde nodded, still trying to control her breathing. "Thanks Epps."

The Sergeant laughed. "No problem Callie."

For a moment Callie just grinned, smiling stupidly at everyone around her. Her overwhelming feelings finally settling as happiness and joy took over.

"Why don't you go see your horse Callie? I think you deserve to see him." The large seeker said softly, glad that he had done this right.

Callie nodded, still smiling, giving his canopy one last squeeze, the closest thing to a hug she could give him before he set her back down onto the dusty ground. Giving him another grin Callie turned and jogged the short distance to the paddock. Hopping the fence with the practised ease of someone who had lived on a farm for most of their childhood, the woman moved to her own horse, her high happy laughter music to Thundercracker.

He had gotten this right for her and if he could accomplish this, then they must be able to find a way to convince Mearing to let them stay. Sighing happily Thundercracker settled back onto his haunches, content to watch Callie pet her horse.

There was a _vop_ and a flash of light, and suddenly his bond mate was by his side, his voice excited. "Did she like it?"

"She loves it." Robert answered arms crossed over his chest, grin still in place as he and William started their slow walk to the paddock.

Skywarp grinned, happiness and pleasure flowing over the bond. "I knew she would love it."

Starscream's hesitant pulse from the trine bond reached them both, allowing them to know that he too was pleased that Callie and Lucy were so pleased with their gifts. Skywarp chirred happily, the pair sending a pulse back to their trine leader, and hope filled Thundercracker's spark.

()()()

In dirty, grubby street clothes that were spattered with grime and blood, Danny sat quietly on a couch in a lounge area of the facility they were being held in. Outwardly she was calm and interested in the excited conversations that were occurring around her.

Inside she was writhing with worry and fear. Fear of what they were going to do to Sunstreaker.

_Crack open its head to access that brilliant computer._

_Break apart that chest plating to see what kind of energy source it has._

_What kind of fuel did it consume? Perhaps they could pump some from it for further study._

Suppressing a shudder, the car thief gripped her glass of champagne tighter, taking a small swig to control her nerves. She had asked them, when the excited scientist had started their small celebration, what would they do if he was actually sentient.

They had laughed at her much to her horror, and Dr. Hemmen had happily explained how they were not, could not be sentient. It, Sunstreaker, was nothing but a machine, a piece of equipment like an excavator or a bulldozer. Something they can take apart without its consent because it wasn't alive.

Rage boiled deep inside as Danny plastered a fake smile at their words; she may not have known how baby robots were created, and they may have very well been built, but that didn't make them any less alive.

Sunstreaker had feelings and _did_ feel despite his cold outward appearance. Why else would he have been so angry and hurt by his twin hanging out with her? The gold Autobot was just as much alive as she was, even though he was not made of flesh and bone, and he could be hurt and had the ability to be afraid.

Right now Sunstreaker was afraid, him calling out to her for help had nearly killed her, had cut her deep as she walked away from the people who were going to hurt him. So badly. Guilt swamped her, leaving Danny feeling sick and alone. She hadn't meant for this to happen, hadn't meant for Sunstreaker to end up here.

The human strove for a cold indifference as she bit her tongue to keep her silence as right now she needed to be smarter than these people; she needed to get Sunstreaker out of here before they hurt him.

Rage and helplessness, and guilt clouded her head as she tried to find a way out of here.

Her father's words suddenly whispered in her head, a memory from long ago when she was small enough to sit on an engine block; _Think about your problem and what the most obvious solutions are. Then work backwards from there._

Danny suddenly calmed with her father's voice in her head, helping her fight off the panic. Humming a soft tune she thought about what she needed to do; she needed to get into the room they were keeping Sunstreaker in without raising an alarm. They underestimated her and she would use that to her advantage.

"Dr. Zanza, what if others like it come here looking for him…it?" Danny corrected herself with a shy smile, insides churning.

The small man laughed. "It'd be impossible for them to get past our defenses. Not with the turrets, the tanks and the solders outside, they'd never make it through."

The only way to get into the room that Sunstreaker was held captive in was with the key the guard by the door had, a little red one which slipped into the terminal lock to be used in tandem with a hand scanner.

"But what if someone were to attack from the inside? These walls look…like concrete."

Again the doctor laughed. "Danielle, the odds of someone attacking from the inside are next to impossible, and the strength required to break through concrete is extreme. Impossible." He gave her a sympathetic look, patting her knee. "Stop worrying Danielle, no one will get you here."

She faked a smile nodding.

Danny needed that key and would do whatever it took to get it. She would get Sunstreaker out of here at all costs.

"When," Danny cleared her throat. "When is Dr. Hemmen starting?" She was going to need a weapon, and that was something attainable. That was an achievable goal.

Dr. Zanza grinned. "We need to be in the observatory in fifteen minutes."

Taking a deep breath Danny nodded and plastered on another fake smile. "I'm very excited but I'm going to need to use the bathroom before we start. Where is…that?"

The pudgy little man grinned up at her. "Of course my dear, Doug here will take you then bring you up to the observatory when you're done."

The smile still plastered on her face, she nodded, messy pony tail bobbing and swinging behind her. The guard, Doug, one of many she had seen walking around in the facility, had some kind of weapon attached to his hip and Danny's brown eyes tracked it for a moment before she smiled brightly at the doctor, nodding to the man her thanks.

Quietly Danny followed her guard, her brown satchel thrown over her shoulder, the money inside no longer holding her attention as it had before. She ignored the ache in her shoulder from where the bullet had grazed it.

Nothing else mattered right then other than getting Sunstreaker out of this hell.

()()()

Coming into the bathroom Danny saw Dr. Alice Hemmen washing her hands at the first sink. The brunette glanced up as she came in, watching her through the mirror and looking down her nose at Danny and her dirty clothing.

Slowly walking to the nearest stall Danny paused when the scientist spoke, flicking her hands to dry them. "You're right, you know."

The thief paused, turning to look at the taller, polished woman confused. "Excuse me?"

"About them being sentient dear." Horror etched into the younger woman's features and Alice waved her off. "Oh come now, don't be so horrified that I know. I've spent over a year studying that red Lamborghini, did you really think I would spend all that time watching him and _not_ realize he was not just some kind of powerful AI?"

The taller woman tutted as she turned to face Danny fully, leaning back on the edge of the sink. Danny shuddered, her stomach knotting as she gripped at her satchel out of a need for comfort. "Then why are you doing this to him? Why not just let him go?"

She grinned at the crack in Danny's voice. "Money. Dr. Zanza is paying me a lot of money to be on this research team." She gave a small shrug and a twisted smile. "And just because _he's a real boy_ doesn't mean I'm going to stop my research. He has what I need, an unfortunate side effect for him really. His car mode is rather pretty." Her grin sharpened as he looked down at the thief. "Or at least it was before you happened."

Realization set in and rage fired though the younger of the two women as Danny glared at the scientist. Her shoulders drew back in an effort to look taller and her jaw came forward as her hands stopped their useless fluttering and balled into tight fists. "How do you know about Sideswipe?" she hissed between gritted teeth.

The grin became predatory. "Sideswipe? Cute name. Your little _Sideswipe_ likes to race along the empty roads around Vegas. The areas where the police don't patrol often and are often deserted with the exception of the occasional muscle car and motorcycle." The scientist gave the thief a cold smile. "We were planning on taking him his next time out then you and the yellow one decided to play tag in Vegas. Oh well, he'll do just as well." Giving Danny one last smirk the doctor turned to walk out of the bathroom.

"He's gold." Danny spat as rage rushed through her small frame.

Alice paused to give the thief a confused look. "Excuse me?"

"Sunstreaker is gold." She repeated, knowing how he _hated_ to be called yellow, not exactly sure when she had learned that.

Alice Hemmen's sickly sweet smile was directed at Danny, and it made her skin crawl. "Sunstreaker? How subtle. I'll be sure to call him that when I eviscerate him."

Danny clenched her teeth harder at the comment while the brunette smiled and gave a small laugh as she left the bathroom, leaving Danny alone once again. Stomach churning, Danny sunk to the floor, the guilt returning tenfold. This was her fault. Sunstreaker was here because of her. They were going to eviscerate him because he was out here alone.

Breathing hitching for a moment her brown eyes closed as she focused and her head fell into her hands, fingers clasping at clumps of hair in frustration. A song popping into a head, Danny began to hum a soft broken tune; she couldn't have a break down yet, Sunstreaker couldn't afford her to.

"Pull your shit together." She hissed to herself between gritted teeth, drawing in deep breaths of air. Blinking away the tears Danny pushed to her feet and walked to the sink, dropping her bag on the counter. Swallowing hard, she pushed her shoulders back as she slipped her jacket off, carefully laying it over her satchel before looking at herself in the mirror.

Her face was dirty and her chin scraped up from where she had been shoved face down into the pavement when they took Sunstreaker. The bandage around her arm was bloody from the earlier bullet, as where her hands and there were bags under her eyes from lack of sleep. She couldn't even remember the last time she had actually brushed her hair.

She looked like shit, or so she thought.

But her black tank top was a low cut, and if she wanted this too work that was what was most important.

Stomach churning again over what she was about to do, Danny washed her hands and face at the sink and took down her hair, running her fingers through her knotted locks in a vague attempt to make herself look more presentable.

Face and hands clean, knowing she wasn't going to look any better without twelve hours of sleep and a shower, she turned and slowly walked to the bathroom door.

_'Sunstreaker, you need to get to Sunstreaker.'_ She told herself as she opened the door slightly, a coy smile spreading across her lips as she looked up at her guard.

The man, tall and broad, looked at Danny in confusion as she held up a hand, her finger curling in a silent _come here._ Head canting, her guard, Doug she suddenly remembered, followed her back inside the bathroom.

Mia was much better at this, playing the victim, the damsel in distress to get what she wanted when she had to. Her sister was soft and looked kind and helpless. She could play at seduction without ever having to really work at it, or promise anything.

Insides churning, Danny wasn't sure how her little sister did it, never mind making it look easy.

"Everything alright?" she was asked, a smirk spreading over Doug's face, yellow stained teeth showing through.

Nauseous, feeling stupid and naïve, Danny linked her fingers into the edge of his pants and pushed herself to her toes so that her mouth rest beside his ear. "Love a man in uniform." She told him in what she hoped was a husky whisper.

Doug gave her another confused look and Danny just managed to plaster on what she hoped was a coy smile, hoping she hadn't blown it.

_'Sunstreaker, you're doing this for Sunstreaker.'_

Locking away her pride as Doug grinned at her, Danny forced a giggle and led him to the nearest bathroom stall, turning with a sway of her hips and fingers still toying with the edge of his pants. With another small smile she backed him into the stall, pushing him down onto the toilet.

Danny cringed inwardly. She held no attraction to this man but nor did she feel guilty for what she was about to do. Sunstreaker was her priority. He had protected her, saved her when she was in trouble and she was damned if she was going to let him down now. With this in mind, Danny allowed herself to be pulled towards Doug, his rough hand grasping her smaller one and pulling her onto his lap, forcing her to straddle him.

Pressing her mouth to Doug's, his hands roughly groping at her bottom, Danny wondered when exactly her concern for Sunstreaker had sparked. Focusing on Sunstreaker for a moment the car thief let her body switch to autopilot so she didn't have to think about what she was doing as she placed her hands on his wide shoulders while her mouth moved against his chapped lips.

She almost felt sorry for Doug, he was only doing his job. Then she shut those feelings away.

Sunstreaker, she focused on Sunstreaker. Something had happened in Vegas between them; maybe it had been his relentless search for her, maybe it was that he was as stubborn as she or possibly it was some kind of hero worship for saving her life. Whatever it was, whatever had caused it, Danny had started to kind of like Sunstreaker.

Racing through Vegas had been more fun than she had had in a long time and wondering when he would next pop up only added an extra element of excitement. When he had saved her, Danny stopped looking at him as the enemy and started looking at him as a person, and she had hurt him.

It was true that they had hurt each other, both had been aiming to tear the other down, and that her feelings had just been as hurt as his. But now that she thought about it, Sunstreaker didn't have many friends.

She winced when Doug slapped her bottom, groping a little tighter, lulling him further into a false sense of security; her mind going back to the golden frontliner she needed to save.

Sideswipe, she realized when they waited for Brandon to pay her, was Sunstreaker's only real friend. The large frontliner really was scary, emotionally stunted and had a hard time fitting in, that much Danny had realized since coming to the _Ark_. However Sideswipe had plenty of friends, cared for a lot of his comrades and whilst Sunstreaker had a small pool of friends, Danny was nothing but one more piece of competition for his brother's attention. But instead of trying to be friendly and maybe even make peace with the golden warrior, Danny had gotten her back up and become defensive, starting a war that ended up with them here.

She would do better, Danny ordered herself. If they survived this, if she managed to succeed in getting Sunstreaker out of here, Danny would do better. She would be nicer to Sunstreaker at the very least.

Her arms stretched over broad shoulders as she kissed Doug, his deep chuckle vibrating against her lips. The tips of her fingers curled around the lid of the toilet tank as she pulled away just ever so slightly, enough to break the kiss.

Giving one last soft smile, Danny dug her fingers under the porcelain lid prising it away from the tank enough to slip her fingers all the way under and moving in one fluid motion, she drew back further, a look of confusion crossed Doug's face as Danny heaved the lid high over his head with a grunt of exertion.

Her next movement, using her whole body in the effort, brought the lid down with a sickening _crack_ over his head. Jerking between her thighs Doug slumped to the side, blood pouring from the wound in his head and seeping from his hair as Danny let the bloodied lid fall to the side with a clank.

Keeping perfectly still for a moment Danny waited to see if he would react, if he would make a grab for her. Blood was leaking from his ears and the car thief wasn't exactly sure how much damage she had done to him, or if he was dead.

Panting as she sat stock still, her first movement was to scrub at her mouth with the back of her shaking hand, Doug limp and unmoving. Dread bolted through her and _murderer_ floated through her head, but she shook it out, focusing on why she was doing this. Wasting too much time already Danny made a grab for his gun, laughing a little hysterically while relief surged through her when she pulled the Glock from its holster.

Slipping from his lap Danny turned back to the sink to wash her hands again, carefully setting the gun down as she scrubbed them clean. Slipping her jacket back on she zipped it up and calmly shouldered her bag before tucking the gun into the back of her pants; its cold metal an odd sort of familiar comfort.

She had a weapon now and all she had to do was to get to Sunstreaker and get the hell out of here.

Steeling her nerves Danny pushed her shoulders back and held her head high. Gathering her hair she put her red locks back into a messy pony tail and calmly left the bathroom. She didn't bother to check if Doug still had a pulse; and that was the difference between her and Mia. Her little sister would have found a way to not kill him, and if she was backed into a corner and had to, she would have fretted over the end of a life, and would have checked to see if he still had a pulse.

Danny simply didn't care. Sunstreaker was what was important now.

Her small hand unconsciously brushed against her belly where the white scar cut across her abdomen. Danny would not allow Sunstreaker to live through what she had. That thought strengthening her resolve, she retraced the steps back to the room they were holding Sunstreaker in. All she needed now was that little red key.

()()()

Eyes forward, shoulders back and mouth in a grim line, Danny marched through the compound acting as though she was meant to be there. Guards passed by her, some glancing at her but most did not and no one said a thing to her. The small amount of the compound she had seen was fairly easy to find her way around, Doug had lead her from the lounge to the bathroom and the way back had been easy to retrace. Between the lounge and where they were holding Sunstreaker was just as easy.

The compound however must have been much larger than what she had seen as no one said a thing about her presence; a new face marching through the white walls. This led her to believe that new faces were normal and just like when stealing cars, act like you own the place and no one will question your actions or why you were there.

Brown eyes flicked to the backs of yet another pair of guards heading in the opposite direction, neither had even bothered to give her a second glance; nor did either have a red key like the one guard who stood in front of Sunstreaker's door had.

Swallowing hard the car thief kept going, walking past the lounge and back to the Autobot's prison. Her resolve hardening, Danny pushed her worry and fear into a small box and buried it to deal with later. Right now Danny needed to be cold so that she could focus on what she needed to do.

The door to the 'operating theatre' didn't come soon enough in the woman's opinion, and with any luck Hemmen, Danny refused to call her Doctor, would not have started yet.

The guard caught sight of her quick enough, confusion spreading through him.

Plastering on a warm smile Danny tilted her head, pony tail swinging behind her. Confusion melted into his own warm smile as Danny's arm twisted behind her back, thin fingers wrapping around the grip of the gun.

()()()

Desolation filled Sunstreaker, mixing with his ever growing fear and tank churning dread.

All around him fleshy humans in white lab coats set up the equipment they would need to rip him apart and from his lousy vantage point he could only see flashes of silver tools and the flair of torches. However, despite his lack of view the clinking of the scientists setting up their tools sent chills down Sunstreaker's spinal struts.

He no longer bothered to snarl and growl at them when they neared, and he gave up on the death threats; they didn't seem to care, trusting in their equipment to keep his strength at bay.

Still, Sunstreaker kept his terror from his face, a cold mask of indifference in its place to hide behind. He would not break for these monsters and he would not give them a bloody inch. They wanted to rip him apart? _Fine, go head_ Sunstreaker thought to himself, but he would give them as much hell as he could from his vulnerable position.

Dr. Alice Hemmen strolled into her operation theatre, shoulders back and head held high as she glanced around her and to her people. Icy blue optics caught her green eyes, sparkling as she smirked at him; her soft voice barking orders to her temps and underlings.

Everything had to go perfectly, according to her. He was the 'scientific find of the century'. Sunstreaker hated her as much as he hated Danny, the little traitorous slime bag who had landed him in this mess.

This time Sunstreaker did snarl, engine rumbling as he thought of the fracking fleshling, the one who was going to get him and his twin killed thanks to her actions. If he survived this he was going to crush that bag of bones into nothing more than a red smear on the ground. He was going to flatten her, splatter her on the ground like the little bitch that she was.

"I hope you're ready Sunstreaker." The sound of his own name startled Sunstreaker enough to jar him from his homicidal thoughts.

"How….how do you know my name?" The Autobot asked, his voice dropping an octave, his rage fizzling out briefly.

Alice Hemmen grinned at him, knowing she had managed to startle him. "Your little friend gave me your name." Her infuriating grin widened. "She seemed so concerned about you too, concerned that your wee little feelings would be wounded." A white clothed shoulder lifted in a shrug, her cold green eyes boring into his icy blue. "So worried about you."

Rage filled him again as he snarled, engine rumbling violently, his hate for her intensifying. He clawed helplessly at the steel bed he was strapped to, his struggling beginning anew against the bonds, hips and shoulders bucking.

Alice smirked at him as she turned away, walking up the high platform so that she stood over him, her smug voice calling out to those still on the ground. "I want torches one to fourteen primed and fifteen to thirty five prepped the moment we start. Once we begin I would rather not stop, this will be a lengthy project people. We need to ensure that project Sunstreaker remains active."

Fear crept into his spark, settling deep alongside his helpless rage and Dr. Hemmen stepped from the platform and onto his prison of a bed, walking carefully past his belly and arms, coming to stand by his helm.

Venting hitched as the doctor turned her face down to her tablet, a smirk still spread over her face as she gave the last computer checks.

"Dr. Hemmen." The male voice of Dr. Zanza was heard over the PA and Sunstreaker could see his bushy hair in the observatory from above. Upper lip lifted into a snarl, denta bared and snapping as his rage began to take over. "We should wait for Danny to join us. She should be here momentarily."

Sunstreaker watched as Dr. Hemmen turned, her smirk becoming a snarl as her green eyes narrowed up at her boss. "Sir. We have been trying to capture one of these machines for the better part of a year. I do not believe that waiting for a civilian to _watch_ is acceptable."

The Autobot could hear the frown in the other's voice. "We have waited this long, I doubt a few more minutes will make much of a difference."

Part of Sunstreaker sighed in relief, his fate pushed back a little while longer. But he knew the inevitable was coming and he was about to be ripped apart by these fleshlings, and nothing was going to change that, whether Danny was there or not.

The brunet's scowl deepened and Sunstreaker felt like a helpless passenger as they spoke about his life as if it meant nothing; but in the end it did mean nothing to them. What did they care of his past or his future? What did they care of his feelings and fear? Or the fact that this would bring him more pain than any of them could ever imagine. They were going to rip apart his body and toy with his mind. How did someone ever come back from that?

Sunstreaker didn't know and part of him doubted he ever would.

They didn't care about him, just like everyone else, and for a moment grief took Sunstreaker's spark. He didn't want to die and he suddenly longed for the comfort of his twin. Reaching out through their bond Sunstreaker was forced to fight the small sound of restrained pain when he hit that block, desperately wishing he could just _feel_ Sideswipe.

If he was going to die here he just wanted to say goodbye to his twin. Tell him how sorry he was and how loved Sideswipe was. He wanted to warn him to not trust Danny that she was nothing but a filthy traitor with the mask of a friend.

He off lined his optics and slipped the protective covers over them, he didn't want the humans to see his sorrow, his failure. His regret.

"I refuse to wait any longer! I…" Hemmen's rant was stopped dead midway when the sound of a gunshot going off echoed through the hallway, wide and terrified eyes drawn to the doors.

Icy blue optics on lined as the room fell silent around them, the sudden lack of noise from the hallway sending a chill down the spines of the scientists as a few hushed whispers went around the room. Tipping his head to the side and forcing his shoulder up, Sunstreaker tried to see what was going on, and who had fired the gun. Something loosened from around his spark and suddenly Sunstreaker felt hope slowly crawling through his lines, warming his core.

Alice Hemmen froze for only a brief moment before she spun back to face her people. "Get those torches lit! Whatever that was, security will deal with it." She turned, her hair catching in the light until her green eyes bright with excitement met his blue. "I want to get started and open him up."

It was the smugness in her voice, the lightness to it that made Sunstreaker bare his denta, rage flashing up again and he struggled against his bonds, trying to fight the metal that bound him. The renewed hope, a delicate thing and so easily broken, had given him new fight, venom spewing from his mouth in cold, hard clipped words.

"You fucking bitch. Whoever's on the other side is going to slaughter you. You won't get away with this and when I get free, _I will make you pay for this_!"

Hemmen smirked, eyes dark. "Whoever is on the other side of that door is likely dead." The scientist sighed a fake huff of disappointment. "It was probably your little friend, coming to get you. Don't worry, we'll dump her body in the same dog patch of an area that we found her in. After all she was a thief, her getting shot isn't that far of a stretch."

Confusion flickered through Sunstreaker, followed by a sudden sense of dread and unease. "Danny?"

The grin sharpened as her eyes flashed and Sunstreaker could practically taste her smugness. Flashes of light, bright and blinding as the team turned on oxy-acetylene torches, haloed behind the scientist. "She was so upset when I told her that I knew you were sentient. It killed her to leave you here that first time."

"You're lying." He snarled, engine revving in the room, loud over the scurrying noises of hustling apprentices.

"I'm afraid I'm not. You're smart Sunstreaker, figure it out. You don't clench your fists and jaw when you want to leave someone." Her smug smirk re-ignited his rage, his shoulders jerking up in an attempt to crush the human, needing more than wanting to feel her small body flatten out under his fist.

"If that is Danny then you're screwed. You have no idea what she's capable of. She will _fuck_ you over."

"Sunstreaker." Alice Hemmen looked almost amused. "She's dead. Her brains are now likely splattered across the wall, our cleaning crew will have a tough time scrubbing that off."

"You don't know that." He said coldly, optics narrowed, not letting the doubt creep in despite the fact he could feel it battering at his processor.

"I do know that. If she were alive then where is she? Why hasn't she come to your rescue? Why hasn't she just come through those doors?" The scientist's delicate hand waved behind her to the door, polished nails flicking.

Sunstreaker glanced at the door, feeling some kind of dumb hope that just maybe Danny wasn't dead and that she would come strutting through that metal door in her usual caustic, sarcastic and insufferable fashion. But naturally there was no mouthy little human barging in where she didn't belong and disappointment filled his spark. Sunstreaker's face fell, thinking he should be used to being disappointed by humans, then felt guilty for that.

The little human was likely bleeding out or already dead. The frontliner forced his throat to work, swallowing the knot that built at the back of his intake.

"See? Your little friend is dead and no one is coming to save you."

Cold, blue optics slid from the closed doors to the smug woman who stood so close, Sunstreaker's mouth a hard, angry line and guilt flushed unexpectedly.

It wasn't his fault the thief had gotten herself killed, he didn't tell her to come out here. He didn't tell her to come back for him, in fact this was her fault! He had followed her out here, not the other way around.

Yet Sunstreaker felt his spark tighten at the thought of her spark blinking out of existence, or rather her heart stopping as she was human. It wasn't as though he owed her anything, she was an adult who made her own choices.

Still…

He had promised to bring her home alive, and now she was dead.

Sunstreaker looked away with a grunt, not able to stand the smirk the scientist wore, his optics dimming sadly as guilt and dread filled his spark.

Danny was dead and it wouldn't be long until he was too, dragging his twin down with him and he vaguely wondered if humans went to the well of sparks or if they had their own version of it.

Maybe she and Sideswipe could torment him on the other side.

Suppressing a snort Sunstreaker doubted that any of them would end up in the well of sparks, especially after what he and his twin had done in the name of war. They'd likely end up in the Pits; Sideswipe might be lucky enough to go to the Well, but he certainly wasn't.

"It's time to begin Sunstreaker." Alice patted his cheek, Sunstreaker cringing away from the human's careful touch, refusing to acknowledge her. A door swished opened behind her but the scientist didn't pay attention to it. "Try not to scream too much Sunstreaker. I don't want my people to be dis…"

The words died in her throat with a high scream and the bang of a gun.

Blood spattered across his face and Sunstreaker flinched away from it. Alice whimpered as she fell against Sunstreaker's warm cheek, clutching at her shoulder. Turning his helm to look at who fired the gun, the scientist fell from his cheek and collapsed to the metal that he was strapped to.

Calmly, as though she wasn't standing in an underground lab holding a gun, Danny stood stock still, eyes sweeping the room and relief swept through Sunstreaker that the glitch that he had spent far too much time hunting down, didn't have her brains spattered across the back wall.

Her voice was cold, eyes focused on what she was doing as she barked out orders. "Turn off those fucking torches! _Now!_ And back away. And if one of you so much as makes a wrong move I will blow your brains out the back of your fucking skull."

Sunstreaker watched as they jumped to do as they were told, backing away to give her a wide berth and when they had done as she demanded Danny turned and pressed the little red key into the lock to activate it, closing the door behind her. The frontliner smirked as she turned it again, the light above the door flashing red to indicate it was locked down.

Hands bloodied, satchel still slung over her shoulder, Danny turned to face the scientists once more, eyes narrowed. "Oh Alice." The scientist's head snapped up at the sound of her name, hate rolling off her in thick waves at Danny's smug tone. "Be a dear and let him up."

Sunstreaker's lips twitched at the smirk that spread over the thief's face, his cold voice snapping out to her, strong and powerful. "What took you so long!?"

Brown eyes rolled up with a sigh Danny frowned at him. "You try lifting someone three times your size to get his finger prints up to the bloody scanner. It wasn't easy!"

Sunstreaker's engine rumbled in what sounded like annoyance. "I can!" he spat.

Danny's eyes rolled again. "Not fair. You've got a V-12 engine so of course you can lift someone three times your size." The human shook her head, pony tail swinging. "Alice." Her tone sang as she slowly began to move towards the platform. "Get up here, and let him loose."

The overhead PA system cackled to life, Zanza's strained voice coming from the overhead speakers. "Danielle! What are you doing? What is the meaning of this?"

Both frontliner and thief looked up to the observation window, Danny half way up the stairs of the platform. Both glared up at the lead scientist, eyes and optics narrowing. Raising the gun in her hands Danny fired two shots but the bullet resistant glass absorbed the energy from the bullet and spider web cracks spread across the glass, but it did not break.

Sunstreaker jerked against the metal that bound him and Danny frowned at the man's shocked face.

Anxiety suddenly spiked as time ticked by, Sunstreaker watching as Danny jogged up the metal stair case. "Hurry up Danny, we're running out of time."

"Yeah, thanks for the update captain obvious!" She snarled back as she shoved the cluster of scientists from her path. Brown eyes narrowed on Alice Hemmen when she stood over Sunstreaker's prone frame. "Let's go Alice." Danny snapped at her, gun pointed at the brunette's head.

Alice snarled at the younger woman, using Sunstreaker as leverage to push herself up. Sunstreaker watched the scientist walk down the metal table, clutching her upper arm, Danny focused on her the whole way.

"I'm not letting him go." Alice sneered as she stepped up to the platform, heels clinking down with a sort of finality.

Danny's eyebrow arched, unimpressed. "Fine." She spat, carefully edging around her to the control consol. "I'll let him up myself." Her head tipped down slightly, focusing on the keys under her fingers, the gentle clicking as she tried to release Sunstreaker.

The light reflected off the gun Danny pointed at the tight knot of scientists, ready and willing to shoot if they so much as made a noise.

Alice let her go as a co-worker tried to look at her shoulder but she shrugged him off as she glared at the younger woman.

"He's the scientific find of the century." Alice's voice spat out, sounding desperate. "Think of what he could do for the human race, the technology he could provide us with Danny. Think of the medical advancements, the weapons. You could be setting us back fifty years."

Sunstreaker heard himself snarling, his cold rage focused on Alice Hemmen and the words she spewed, his tanks suddenly churning in fear. What if Danny believed her? Or worse, changed her mind.

Something beeped and Danny's head tipped up, her face flat. "I need your hand to scan to release him."

Sunstreaker smirked as Alice's face fell. "Did you not hear what I just said?"

"Yeah, I did, and look at all the fucks I give."

"Perhaps you don't understand the depth of the situation here."

Danny's face scrunched in annoyance and Sunstreaker felt amusement crawling through his lines. "Perhaps you don't understand the fact I have a gun and will blow your brains out. Now, get over here and give me your hand."

"Danny!" The scientist snapped, using the same tone Sunstreaker had heard Lennox use with Anna. "You simply don't understand…"

"No. You don't understand. I don't give two fucks about medical advancements, or technological advancements or weapons or any of that shit. I care about getting Sunstreaker out of here." Her mouth remained a firm, angry line. "Now, get over here and scan your goddam hand!"

The scientist's shoulders drew back as her head went high. "No. Security will be here any minute now and I can continue with my scientific research, and you'll be locked up."

Danny rose an eye brow, brown eyes sliding across the wall, a smirk spreading across her mouth. "First of all." She said, sarcasm dripping from her voice. "I put this room on lock down with that fun little key of yours. And I'm willing to bet that there aren't many who can open it from the outside now."

Alice's eyes narrowed angrily, jaw gutting forward as she bit her tongue.

From the table Sunstreaker saw Danny smirk, backing away to the wall. "I haven't seen one of those since I was a kid."

The frontliner followed the jerk of Danny's head, following the straight line to a fire hose coiled innocently behind a plate of glass.

Sunstreaker frowned, as did Alice Hemmen when Danny carefully opened the plate of glass, shoving the hose aside, the thief's eyes never once leaving the scientist while her thin hand slipped from the box, holding a short handled fire axe.

Alice drew back a step, a few others murmuring behind her as pounding on the door began, alerting everyone that security had arrived and they were indeed trapped outside.

"Danny." Sunstreaker called out, his voice tense as he glared at the door, yelling could be heard on the other side.

Tucking the gun into the back of her pants, Danny pointedly ignored the Autobot's call, focusing on Alice. "Here's how it's going to happen." The car thief said coldly. "If you run, I will shoot you down and drag your body back to the console and get what I want. If you refuse to help me, I will break your nose and cut off your hand with my fun little axe here. And I will get what I want."

From his helpless position on the surgical table Sunstreaker could only watch and hope that Danny's gall was not false courage, his servos clenching into fists of helpless rage.

"If you help me release Sunstreaker, and I will," Danny glanced to the trapped frontliner. "We will leave you without hurting anyone else."

The car thief came toe to toe with the scientist, the gun tucked back into the back of her pants and the axe held in both of her hands.

Alice looked aghast, her eyes narrowed in rage as she continued to hold her arm. "You can't do this! This is ridiculous! You are nothing but an uneducated little sh…"

Danny spun the axe around, letting the heavy weight of the head fall down and the heel come up high, and flicking her wrists she drove the heel into Alice's delicate nose. There was a sickening crack as the cartilage shattered, her head snapping back, the scientist gasping as she doubled over in pain, grasping her face.

Coldly, Danny shoved her over with her booted foot, Alice rolling onto her back and with one foot pressing into Alice's right shoulder the other foot forced her right hand down and out.

Sunstreaker couldn't stop the smirk when he heard Alice Hemmen, the woman who had only just threatened to eviscerate him, whimper and plead for mercy. From his vantage point, he watched as Danny lined up the axe, the blade just under Hemmen's wrist. He continued to watch as Danny heaved the axe up and over her head, her whole body in a straight line before she brought it down with as much force as she could.

The thunk of the axe hitting bone was accompanied by the shriek of the doctor, blood spattering up Danny's legs, stomach and face. Shifting her stance, Danny swung the foot that pinned the palm of Alice's hands back and shifted her other foot closer to the wound so that she could pull the axe from the wrist and swinging the axe high again, the thief brought it down a second time, the blade slicing through the last bits of bone, muscle and tendons, separating the hand from the rest of Alice's body.

Alice shrieked again as the lights overhead went out and the emergency lighting came on, some flashing red in time with a siren.

Danny ignored it as she bent to pick up the severed hand and shouldering the axe she coolly walked back to the consol. "You might want to cauterize that, or something." She called over her shoulder, pressing the severed hand to the scanner.

Sunstreaker smirked as others clustered around Alice Hemmen, their voices soft as they looked for direction. The computer beeped and Danny swung back around. "I need a Dr. Oliver Stricker."

A single scientist froze, sitting a little straighter, suddenly trying to look anywhere but at Danny.

"Dr. Stricker, I need your eye." Danny said, sounding far too amused. "I really don't have time for this, so don't make me come and get it."

Weakly, Hemmen grasped his arm, her eyes tinged in pain as she pleaded with her co-worker. "Don't. Don't give in to her demands."

"You have until I count to one."

Alice clutched his arm a little tighter. "Don't give into terrorism!"

"Three."

There was a pause as the pounding on the door got a little more persistent.

"Two."

"Oliver, don't do it. Don't give in."

"One." Danny snarled, already moving towards the knot of scientists huddled together.

Tearing his arm from Hemmen's hand Stricker stood quickly, hands going into the air. "Stop! Wait please. I'll comply."

Fighting the excitement that crawled through his frame Sunstreaker watched as the second scientist scrambled, nearly running to the computer and pressing his eye to the scanner. Suddenly there was the sounds of clicking and gears spinning, and the shackles at Sunstreaker's wrists and ankles snapped open, the thick bars of metal that pinned his shoulders and hips pressing open with a hiss of hydraulics.

Moving quickly, body moving with smooth precision, Sunstreaker rolled off the table to his pedes and standing tall with a snarl of his engine he tore his blaster from subspace, pointing it at the cluster of scientists. Baring his denta Sunstreaker snarled at them, armour flaring wide with rage, aggression and hate. He wanted them dead. He wanted to crush them beneath his fist and leave them a red smear on the floor.

Suddenly he tracked Danny as she started running, tossing the severed hand over the railing, the bloody axe still in her hand. "We don't have time for that, we need to go!"

The frontliner, despite being relieved to see the glitch alive, even happy to see her alive, was still worried, afraid even, that she was lying. His weapon tipped to her, buzzing as the blaster primed, warming up as he pointed it at her.

The thief froze, eyes going wide as she skidded to a stop, hands reaching for the sky. "Sunstreaker?"

"How do I know you're not lying now?" He spat, optics narrowed, thinking of his twin. If Danny really was a traitor he wouldn't put Sideswipe into that vulnerable position.

"You think I'm lying!" Danny spat back, sounding scandalized. "Why the hell would I be lying?"

The sirens blared and the red lights flashed over her pale skin. "What if this is all a plot to get you back to the _Ark_ , to get to Sideswipe?"

For the briefest of moments Danny saw the panic in Sunstreaker's usually cold optics, the _need_ to protect his brother from any threat. "Sunstreaker, if this was nothing but a ploy to get me back to the others, I wouldn't have cut her damned hand off."

Sunstreaker snarled, shifting as he decided whether to leave Danny or take her with him.

"Sunstreaker, I'm not lying." She flinched when the banging on the door grew more persistent. "Listen, let's hash this out later. Like, when we're not about to die."

Blue optics narrowed further but eventually Sunstreaker lowered his blaster, jerking his helm. "Come on. If you fall behind I'll leave you behind."

Scurrying down the stairs Danny ran to stand beside the frontliner, hands clutching the axe more out of a panic rather than a need. "Now what?"

"Stay close." The Autobot barked as he crossed the room in even steps, coming to the wall opposite the door.

Lifting his blaster, Sunstreaker fired at the wall and it exploded outward with a boom. Danny ducked, flinching at the sudden loud noise as metal and cement blew outward.

Blaster still poised, the finned helm jerked again. "Let's go!" Came the barking order, the frontliner already moving out through the hole in the wall before Danny had time to respond.

It was like stepping back out into the frontlines again. Humans were all over the place, running and firing on him, and there were tanks to his left with a high wall and turrets to his right.

Battle protocols snapped online, everything else dropping into the background as the cold took his processor. Sunstreaker didn't care about Danny, he didn't worry about his twin or even the battle that was about to take place, not while he rode the killing edge as keenly as any warrior, and his rage fell beneath the ice that was his spark. It didn't matter that these were humans that fired on him, it only mattered they were enemies.

Coldly, Sunstreaker lifted his blaster, aiming for one tank at a time, balls of fire reaching towards the sky one after the other as they exploded. Walking coolly along the cool desert sand, the starless sky above him, Sunstreaker focused on killing and destroying his enemies and as blasts of hot energy vaporised the fleshy bodies, dust floated on the dry wind, lost to eternity.

He lost it, and everything that made Sunstreaker, Sunstreaker, was locked away in a cage of ice below the surface.

He didn't hear Danny screaming his name as nothing was going to knock him from his icy mindset. Not even when something punctured his upper thigh and lower belly, electricity suddenly pulsing through his frame, forcing him to his knees.

His vision swam and Sunstreaker snarled as the electricity that coursed through his lines began to overload his processor. His arms began to weaken and he slowly sunk to the ground, icy optics catching sight of the guard who brought him down.

A weak pudgy little man with greasy hair and a nasty smirk. He enjoyed doing this, enjoyed bringing such a strong, proud warrior to his knees, the vile little creature.

Sunstreaker hated him; had not hated something so strongly in a very long time, not even Danny.

Then just as suddenly as the pain ripped through his frame, it stopped, Sunstreaker's processor playing catch up with what just happened. He panted into the ground, dust kicking up as he vented deeply, cobalt optics falling on Danny as she turned from the gasping man on the ground, his thick hands grasping the axe head in his belly.

In one of her hands she held what looked like a taser, the same taser that brought him to his knees.

Panting hard, trying to get his helm to stop spinning, Danny ran under his frame and reaching up onto her tip toes she grab at the metal prong in his belly. Using her body weight to pull it out she then reached up for the one impaled in his thigh, her voice strained as she reached. "Now who's getting left behind?"

Sunstreaker snarled as he sat up, moving to his pedes as quickly as he could. "Shut up." He spat at her as his servo shot out, scooping the little fleshling up.

Danny made a high pitched noise, something between a shriek and a squawk, dirt that had also been scooped up falling around the human as Sunstreaker dropped her onto his shoulder, the taser prongs flapping uselessly as Danny grasped the seams in his shoulder as tight as she could.

"Hang on." He spat at her, not really ensuring she was as he began to move much more quickly, the end was in sight. All Sunstreaker had to do was get over that wall and to freedom. He heard her gasping, could feel tiny fingers clutching at damaged gold armour as Sunstreaker ran, his powerful frame moving as hard as it could, arms pumping and legs moving hard as he dodged tanks, leaping easily over the humans barricades.

For the most part Danny didn't say a word as she clung to him, trying not to fall from his frame, Sunstreaker ignoring her as he moved through the battle field. It wasn't until her voice grew higher in pitch as she tried to get his attention. "Tank! Sunstreaker tank! There's a tank! _Tank!Tank! Tank!"_

Sunstreaker heard the whistle of a rocket before he even turned his helm and he spun on instinct, spinning like a dancer out of harm's way, the human clinging to his shoulder until her fingers went numb while her small frail body tensed, waiting for impact. But instead Sunstreaker's blaster came up in a smooth, fluid motion, laser fire blasting the human military vehicle away.

"Sun-Sunny! There's another one! Tank! Tank! _TankTankTankTank!"_ Her voice raising in pitch as she tried to smoother her panic.

Already moving the frontliner headed towards the second moving tank, staying out of firing range until he was close enough to touch. Moving quickly, staying low to the ground, Sunstreaker snatched the human from his shoulder, rolling her gently along the ground and out of danger. He could hear her grunting with the impact, cursing as her limbs flailed when she tried to catch herself.

Sunstreaker's black servos fisted around the tank's barrel and with a grunt of effort he lifted up the heavy machine, tossing it like a baseball player throwing a hard ball towards the tall cement wall.

With a crash and a bang the tank burst through the wall, sending debris and smoke into the air. Moving quickly again Sunstreaker scooped Danny back up off the ground and breaking into a dead run, his whole frame worked with the exertion.

Leaping over the broken part of the wall Sunstreaker's pedes finally hit the lonely dirt road of freedom.

Behind him voices shouted, guns blazed and bullets whizzed by him, but Sunstreaker ignored it all, including Danny's panicked voice shouting to _GOGOGO!_

Skidding a little as his powerful frame turned to run down the road, heading back towards the bright lights of the Las Vegas strip, Sunstreaker took two, three running strides before lunging forward, practically tossing Danny into the air.

The human flailed as she screamed, the Autobot transforming around her, his powerful frame shifting around her feeble form, his body becoming sleek and fast. Danny grunted, her body jerking as his wheels hit the ground, engine roaring as he pushed it into the red, forcing as much power through his frame as he physically could.

He could feel Danny twisting around in his passenger seat with a laugh, small hands grasping the head rest as she looked to see if they were being followed. "Get off the road as soon as we can, or drive in the dirt, they won't think to look for us off road." Danny gasped a little, her voice edging into a nervous laughter.

Sunstreaker shifted gears, drifting down the first little road he came to, barreling towards Vegas and hoping they found a familiar road that would take them home. Pushing his engine harder, putting the blaring lights and sirens behind him, Sunstreaker climbed back down from the peak of madness that he had to sink into when in the midst of battle, and now that he begun to calm down Sunstreaker needed to know for sure if his passenger was being truthful, or if he needed to dispose of her before they returned to the _Ark._

Sunstreaker would not allow Danny to pose a threat to his twin, or harm him in any way, and he would destroy her if he had to.

Engine running hot Sunstreaker tried to keep his anger at bay and began looking for a place to have a calm, rational chit chat with the irritating little thief.

**TBC…**


	9. Truths

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny and Sunstreaker have a little chit chat

Important Information

“Blah” Speaking

::Blah:: comm. link

‘ ** _Blah_ ’** bonded speech

‘Blah’ thinking

 Astrosecond- 2.5 earth Seconds

Klik- 150 earth seconds/ 2.5 earth Minutes

Orn- 150 earth minutes/ 2.5 earth Hours

Joor- 60 earth hours/2.5 earth Days

Metacycle- 17.5 earth days/2.5 earth Weeks

Vorn- 10 earth weeks/2.5 earth months

Stellercycle-30 earth months/2.5 years

Breem-slang for a moment/minute.

Night Cycle: star down to star up

Day Cycle: Star up to star down

  **Authors Note:** As always, thank you to everyone who read, reviewed and commented on the last chapter. Those messages are what keep me going :)

Also, a huge thank you to SunnySideofBlue, who helped me sort out parts of the twins past and the horrors they were subjected to like ages ago. (See the end notes for more information, since I don’t want to spoil it now :3)

And as always a huge thank you to my beta, Darkness_Rising, you always rock my socks :)

**WARNING:** There will be mention of past rape, not overly depictive flash backs, forced breeding and horrific science in this chapter. If any of that is a trigger for you, please read with caution or not at all.

  **Disclaimer** : I own only my OC’s, nothing else.

 ()()()

The desert flew by in dark blurs of black sky and dark sand. It was Sunstreaker’s speed, his engine pushing as hard as he could force it to flee the horrid little science lab that had gotten them back to Vegas, and Danny’s intimate knowledge of the city that had gotten them through the streets as quickly as physically possible.

They were already on the other side of the city, the bright blinding lights at their backs as they rocketed back to the Ark, Sunstreaker thriving on the open roads and the broken pavement under his tyres. It was the feeling of being free, of _moving_ that help ease the tightness in his spark. So long as he kept moving he was safe; that had been his life saving grace when he was on the front line.

But that gnawing and almost panicked feeling in his spark, the _unease_ that he may be bringing a traitor back into their midst ate at Sunstreaker, and it more than bothered him. Sunstreaker felt sick to his tanks with worry and the more he let it eat at him, the more it infuriated him.

He needed to be sure, needed to be absolutely, positively sure that the human he harboured was on the up and up and was not going to get his twin murdered, or worse.

The human in question, Danny, kept twisting around in his passenger seat, looking behind them at the empty lonely road they left in their wake, ensuring that no one was following them.  She was relaxed, her small hands digging into the head rest as her dark eyes scanned the roads behind them.

She wasn’t afraid of him anymore but she appeared to be afraid of what could be following them. Before what had happened Sunstreaker would have scoffed at such a notion that there was something out there more dangerous than he, that there was something beyond him and his capabilities that should be feared.Now however, Sunstreaker had seen the threat and had experienced firsthand what they were capable of, and he had been helpless to defend himself. In the end it had been the very human he worried was a traitor that had gone out of her way to save him, to protect him even.

All of it just confused him, there were too many conflicting emotions; he felt grateful to a degree, that Danny for came back for him, yet she had left him there to begin with, bound and helpless.

But she _had_ come back for him when so many of his own had left him behind before now.

The uncomfortable feeling returned and Sunstreaker again felt like a failure. He had failed to save himself from the lab, had failed to easily capture Danny and was failing again to determine if she was a threat or not.

He could take her to Prowl, present his side of things and let his commanding officer make that call, however if she was a threat Sunstreaker wouldn’t, couldn’t, put Prowl in harm’s way. Prowl had taken care of him for so long and had gone out on so many limbs to keep him and Sideswipe safe that he would not allow anything to harm Prowl.

Sunstreaker would have to make the call.

The Autobot could see the skeleton of new buildings being built in the distance, humans continuing their encroachment into the rest of the world and he barrelled towards the new homes being built, ones that would one day make a little suburb for more humans to live and breed. Sunstreaker didn’t think about that, he only reacted as they came upon the first structure.

Yelping as Sunstreaker veered hard off the road Danny fell into the driver side seat, small hands scrambling for purchase as his back end fishtailed. Sunstreaker ignored her undignified little squeak, his engine pushing harder as it red lined, his frame shuddering as he pulled off the main road.

Pulling herself up by grasping onto his head rest Danny scowled up at his rear view mirror. “The fuck Sunstreaker? What are-“

She was abruptly cut off as Sunstreaker drifted hard again, sending her spilling back into the passenger side seat and Danny cursed at herself at cutting his seat belts as she hit the passenger door with her shoulder. Suddenly Sunstreaker transformed as her small body tumbled around in his cabin, dumping her and her stupid little bag onto the cool, dry sands of the Nevada desert.

The thief cursed again as she rolled, plumes of sand kicked up into the air around her as she tumbled. Landing face first in the dirt Danny groaned and cursed as she pushed herself up, small head tipping up to scowl up at the gold frontliner.  

“Seriously! What the hell Sun-“ the towering Autobot glared down at the human with icy optics before reaching down to gently pick up the squirming human by her leg, her words cut off with a squawk as Sunstreaker lifted her up, letting her dangle upside down.

“D-dude! Seriously! Put. Me. Down!” Danny spat as she struggled and squirmed, fighting to right herself.

Sunstreaker ignored her, snarling angrily as he strode smoothly to the frame of the nearest building, dumping her roughly on a thick piece of metal with a dull thud.

“Sunstreaker! What are you-“ She was cut off again as the Autobot snarled, large servos slamming around the metal beam she perched on, warping the steal like it was putty and drawing a gasp and a partial scream from the human. The metal beneath her buckled and twisted, trembling under her small weight as Sunstreaker crushed it on either side.

“Shut. Up!” He snapped at her, his cold tone causing her mouth to snap shut, brown eyes softening in surprise.

When she fell silent for longer than a moment Sunstreaker continued in cold, hard words. “Now, explain why I shouldn’t just crush you here and now and leave your corpse to be picked at by desert animals.”

Surprise turned to shock and anger. “Sunstreaker, what the hell, I don’t…”

“Don’t lie to me!” He spat at her, the metal under his powerful servos twisted further and Sunstreaker took no satisfaction in hearing her heartbeat begin to pound in her rib cage; the unmistakable tang of fear rank in the air.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Danny tried to spit back but her words had lost their venom. “Sunstreaker, what are you on about?”

“Are you working for them?” he hissed, baring his denta at her.

Brown eyes widened, confusion clouding her dark orbs. “Who? Working for who?”

“Don’t play games with me!” It was a near panic which drove him on, that old familiar rage feeding into his spark, keeping the uncertainty at bay.

The metal screamed on either side of her, causing the human to wince and clutch at the beam a little tighter. “Sunstreaker,” she tried to reason with him. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You left me there!” Sunstreaker nearly shrieked, his voice cracking a little. “You let them take me and you left me there. Now, I’m going to ask you again. Are. You. Involved. With them?” The Autobot’s words quickly becoming clipped and so very cold.

It took a moment for the confusion to clear before indignation coursed through her and darkened her eyes. “You think I’m working for them?” Danny spat, her anger returning.

Ice cold blue optics narrowed, the gold mech’s mouth pulling into a hard, grim line. “If you are not then why did you leave me there? Why did you promise to help them?”

Danny glowered up at the gold mech, her eyes hard and her own mouth in a firm line; defiant and angry. “Use your fucking head Sunstreaker. What could I have done when we were first caught?”

“You could have fought back!” he snarled back at her. There was so much emotion, so much of the _betrayal_ he felt in his voice.

Danny’s face screwed up in rage, brown eyes becoming narrowed slits. “Sunstreaker.” She hissed at him, her heart rate slowing as her anger bled away her fear. “Look at me. I’m five foot seven and I weigh barely a hundred and twenty five pounds. Before we came to the _Ark_ we were half starved most of the time! Any extras went to Lucy to make sure she was _always_ well fed!”

Those dark, angry brown eyes bore into Sunstreaker’s ice blue, Danny just as unrelenting as he. “If I had attempted to fight back against those men, those much larger and armed men, I would either be locked in some shitty room in that shitty building or my brains would be splattered across the pavement so that the buzzards could pick at them! And you,” Danny continued in a low angry voice, “would be in pieces by now.”

Blue optics glared down at her, brown eyes glaring back. “Do you know what men think, when they see me?”She waited for an answer, a short, sharp shake of his helm to say no was all she got; Sunstreaker not trusting himself to speak, not with this level of emotion running as high as it was.

Danny carried on. “Most men, when they look at me see tits and ass. They see a non-threat because I am small and I was born with the wrong bits between my legs. And you know what?”Face still hard, Sunstreaker gave her another shake of his helm.“I let them. I let them believe I am small and weak and not a threat. I let them believe that I am on their side, and that I am weak and submissive. Do you know why?”

A growl rattled deep in Sunstreaker’s chest and he squeezed at the beam a little tighter, buckling and cracking further under his servos. “I let them think that so that when I smash their heads in or cut off their hands it comes as a surprise. They don’t see it coming because they don’t expect someone small and weak to do it. So I use it to my advantage, and it is the one thing that has never failed me.”

She looked down, angry and bitter. “So that’s why I left you there. That’s why I played along. They thought I was on their side and I played along until I could find a way out. Find a way to get _you_ out!”

“And how,” his voice was still bitter and unsure. “Do I know that you are not playing me now? That you are in fact _not_ on their side, that you won’t let them in once you’re back on the Ark?”

“If I was on their side,” Danny spat leaning forward and looking back up at the Autobot. “I would not have cut that bitches hand off. They would have released you willingly when I came through that door. I did what I had to do to save you Sunstreaker.”

The pair continued to glare at each other, neither wanting to be the one to back down to the other; neither wanting to admit defeat or that they were in the wrong.

It was Danny whose shoulders lowered first. “Listen, I’m sorry that I scared you when I left. I’m sorry that I left you there.”

Her eye softened a little as she frowned up at him, the anger draining away with her long winded rant, leaving her looking as tired as Sunstreaker felt. “I had no intention of leaving you behind, I just needed to find a way out that didn’t involve any more of my blood outside of my body.” 

The dark glare softened as Sunstreaker stepped away, the warped beam groaning in protest when he let go of it and as it shuddered and shook Danny held herself still, her grip tight.

Stepping further back the frontliner scrubbed at his face, rubbing at his dim optics with a sigh. His EM was a fluctuating storm of emotions, everything feeling such a mess, his optics flickering in time with his erratic spark pulse. It figured that it would be a human who had come back for him when so many of his own would have left him to his fate.

So many Autobots would have left him to die there, to be torn apart by the humans and to be yet another experiment to be used up until there was nothing left; and that was all scientists ever did, use him until there was nothing left to give.

Massive servos curled into tight fists and Sunstreaker wasn’t sure if it was out of rage or hurt, his large gold shoulders hunching inwards as the proud back bowed a little. This was as close to a position of grief as Sunstreaker would allow himself to be seen by someone other than his twin.

Sunstreaker’s spark called out to its other half, dismay filling it when nothing but that cold block. He just _didn’t understand_ why Sideswipe liked the little glitch, not when she drove a wedge between them.

“Sunstreaker?” her voice was soft again, lacking any of her previous anger, almost hesitant and worried.

“What?” he spat out, annoyed, angry and tired.

“Why are you so angry? I came back for you, I got you out of there. We’re going home.”

Turning away from the human his helm shook bitterly. “You wouldn’t understand.” He spat.

His chest tightened and again he felt like a failure. The answer was so obvious now, he should have realized it, realized the game she had been forced to play. They had been outnumbered and out gunned, and Danny being so very much smaller than he would have had to play the game a little differently.

Still, he felt like a fool, and so very alone.

“Well I’m not going to if you don’t explain it to me.” She said softly, sitting still on the broken beam, holding as still as possible in case her movement caused it to let go.

Sucking his denta Sunstreaker twisted around to face her. She was small and looked pale from blood loss; his own face peppered from the shotgun blast, his chest blackened from fire. He was still angry and hurting and he just wanted to go home.

He stupidly wanted someone to understand and that someone used to be Sideswipe.

“Do you have any idea what they are going to say about this when I go home?” Sunstreaker snapped, a weak burst of anger bubbling to the surface as he thought about how much he just wanted to crawl into his berth with his twin and curl up to recharge for a week.

“If I wasn’t a laughing stock already I’m going to be now.” The finned helm shook as he looked down and away from Danny, knowing he needed to stop. He just needed to shut up. Sunstreaker didn’t need or want her sympathy, the frontliner didn’t want her understanding or for her to know how _lonely_ he had been without his twin.

Primus, he was nothing but a weak, needy sparkling.

“Why…why would you be a laughing stock?” Danny asked, her tone soft and hesitant, almost unbelieving.

Sunstreaker snorted, quietly stalking back to the skeleton of a building, dropping down with his back to the structure. Danny sat just above his shoulder on the damaged beam as he drew his knees up, his arms dropping heavily over them, his helm slipping down as his cheek rested against his arm.

“I will be a laughing stock because I failed to catch you, managed to get damaged by you and then to top it all off was caught by humans and nearly eviscerated.” He glanced at one of his servos, the same ones that had killed and protected so many of his comrades, even the ones that hated him, the ones he hated.“The loser frontliner who couldn’t even catch a human and nearly got himself killed, had it not been for the human he was supposed to be catching. That’s all I am. That’s all they’ll say.” Heaving a sigh the last of his fight drained from Sunstreaker’s body, leaving him feeling weak and exhausted.

“Everything I touch turns to rust and I’m going to spend the next month being laughed at and prodded at by minibots.” His tone was small and angry, his words slipping out without him meaning them to.

From above him Danny frowned, suddenly feeling guilty, knowing that this was all her fault and she needed to be the one to fix it. Carefully pushing herself from the beam Danny allowed herself to drop the some five feet to his shoulder, landing with a grunt.

Sunstreaker jerked when he felt her light weight drop onto his gold armour, dull optics falling on her slender form with a heaving sigh. Curling up like he was, Danny drew her knees to her chest, dropping her head to rest on her knees.

“I don’t think you’re a loser.” She muttered quietly.

Sunstreaker snorted in disbelief, prompting Danny’s head to pop back up. “No really! Do you have any idea how few people can keep up with me when I’m driving? Like, no one. But you did. I mean, Sunstreaker, you chased me all over Vegas _and_ you kept up with me. You found me over and over again. Not even LVPD could do that!”

“I should be able to keep up with you, I can turn into a car.” He spat bitterly, glowering at the empty desert.

“Yeah, but I know the layout of the city and still you kept up with me.” Danny gave him a lopsided grin. “You’re not a loser Sunstreaker, if anything you’re a hero. I mean, you saved me.”

Snorting, Sunstreaker continued to look out across the empty desert. “Yes, and you saved me so it negates that. Besides, you shot me in the face, Cliffjumper will have a grand old time running with that.”

Danny frowned at the frontliner, stretching out her legs so that they dangled over his shoulder. “Cliffjumper is an ass hat.”

Sunstreaker snorted again. “Of course he is. I still have to deal with his bull though, and this, this is my biggest failure to date.”Primus he was tired and worn out. He was sick of fighting with everyone, sick of always been seen as the bad guy when all he wanted was to spend some time with his twin.

“Sunstreaker, have you ever heard of ‘what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas’?”

The gold mech sighed. “Yes, but I will have to give my report and that little shit will find out. If there is one thing the Autobots are good at, it’s gossip.” Sunstreaker scowled into the night. “It’s not like I haven’t had to deal with this crap my whole life.”Blue optics rolled. “Always the one who loses my temper, the one who is mocked, and then I’m the one who always ends up in the brig for fighting when Cliffjumper gets away with it.” His voice was so low, so bitter.

Jaw set, Sunstreaker shifted his gaze to his pedes and the guilt that washed over Danny quickly increased. The very being that had saved her life was in so much pain, so very lonely, and it wasn’t like she had made this any easier on him.

It was with a sudden clarity that Danny saw it, connected the dots. Sunstreaker didn’t have many other friends besides his twin and as she sat perched on his damaged shoulder Danny tried to recall a time she had seen anyone seeking Sunstreaker out to spend time with, but she realised they didn’t.

Sideswipe had plenty of friends, friends who very quickly became her friends too, making her feel as though she had always been there, except for Sunstreaker. Sunstreaker not only shunned her presence but it seemed that his only friend was Sideswipe, his brother. Danny had no idea why but when she thought about it, it seemed that he didn’t trust many other mechs, certainly not a good portion of the crew marooned on Earth.

Danny’s little face scrunched up and she made a decision then and there that she too would be Sunstreaker’s friend; and she certainly wasn’t going to let some little minibot ass hat instigate a fight with him or make him feel _less_ than he clearly felt about himself.

“Well.” She shrugged. “We could always just omit certain parts of your report. You know, just tell your…bosses?”

“Command.” He supplied.

“Command.” She parroted. “Only tell them what they need to know. You found me, we were caught by some messed up scientist group with weapons that can bring you down and they are a threat to us…you, and that’s that.” She gave a little shrug, her small head tipping up to Sunstreaker with a grin. “No one else has to know what happened between us.”

Hesitating, Sunstreaker looked over to the thief. “You’d do that for me? Omit certain parts? Lie?”

The grin grew large and cheesy. “Of course!” There was no doubt in her tone. “I’m an ass Sunstreaker but I’m not heartless. Besides, you saved my life when Dennis tried to merc me. That makes us like…. _friends_ now.”

Shooting her a dry look the gold mech smirked at her. “So, we’re friends now?”

That…made his spark feel lighter and he hated that. He should hate her, that much Sunstreaker was sure of, but something had changed. Somewhere between being strapped to a table and being on the run most of the anger and hate towards the human had faded, even if just a little.

“Well duh.” There was no doubt there. “I did commit murder and assault to get you out of there. If that’s not a friend I don’t know what is.”

Sunstreaker snorted before adding. “A comrade, an associate, companion.”

Danny laughed. “Comrades, associates and companions don’t cut other people’s hands off. _That_ is totally what friends do.”

Sunstreaker sighed, shaking his helm. “I don’t know how to be someone’s friend. You and Swipe will be better off without me.”

“Okay Sunstreaker, don’t fool yourself. Sideswipe needs you, he’s sad without you. He’s been upset that you guys are fighting and he doesn’t want to any more. And…I don’t want you guys to fight either.” She shrugged and looked down. “I don’t want to see you guys upset. So…Sunstreaker I’m sorry. I’m sorry for all this. I’m sorry that I made you feel like this.”

Shocked at the words Sunstreaker’s helm lifted a little. “But…I don’t know how to be a friend.”

“Neither do I man.” Her eyes dropped a little sadly. “The last friends I had tried to kill me and my family, so it makes it hard for me to…you know, trust people.”

Sunstreaker nodded with a small snort. “Trust is difficult at the best of times.” He muttered.

“It is.” Danny agreed. “But maybe we can try and just get along, you know, be friendly towards each other. Maybe we could do stuff together, because I don’t know about you but I had a hell of a time running around Vegas being chased by you.”

Giving a little nod Sunstreaker grinned. “It was fun before that police officer ran into me.”

“What can I say?” Danny smirked. “LVPD can’t drive worth shit.”

Sunstreaker snorted, finding the tightness round his spark loosening for the first time since the humans ended up at the Ark.

***

They were back on the road and almost home, the pavement disappearing under Sunstreaker’s tyres as the odd pair rocketed back to base. No longer openly fighting with Danny the drive home was far more peaceful and they had spent the last few hours quietly chatting and telling each other of their past adventures.

The waxy moon hung low in the night sky, Danny having fallen asleep several hours ago as they raced back home, the woman’s small body lax in his cabin while her head lulled against his head rest. They would be home soon, another few hours at most.

Sunstreaker had finally allowed himself to relax and step away from the killing edge now that he had Danny and was returning home.  He would be back with his twin and Prowl by morning, and he would deliver Danny back to her family minus the embarrassing little stories that would never be told.

The threat of the scientists would of course be relayed to his command and that threat would be dealt with accordingly, hopefully ending with a full on raid and destruction of an enemy base. But the bickering, the fights and the shot gun wound would stay between them. A private inside joke that no one else needed to know about.

It was enough to lull Sunstreaker into a sense of security that he didn’t normally feel unless behind the walls of the Ark; some place protected and amongst comrades. It was the peaceful night, the open sky and road putting him at ease. There was no rush, no mission to complete, just a long drive home.

When the attack came Sunstreaker was genuinely surprised, his battle protocols roaring to life and catapulting the frontliner back to the killing edge as he instinctively acted, his sensors screaming in sudden warning; the peaceful drive shattered as the gold frame swerved to miss the explosion from the fired rocket.

Jerking awake as Sunstreaker corrected, Danny looked up in drowsy shock and panic. She didn’t get a chance to ask what was happening before Sunstreaker barked an order, dodging another explosion of fire and debris. “Stay still, hang on and shut up!”

For once Danny listened, small, pale hands grasping at the handle of his door and the handle above her head, her drowsiness fading as the seriousness of the situation became apparent.

Another explosion rocked the Autobot’s frame, the heat blistering his paint, but Sunstreaker barely felt it as he drove, too focused on evading attack.

“Who’s after us?” Danny asked, her voice calm and collected as she craned around to see behind them. “Is it them?”

“No.” Sunstreaker replied, his voice devoid of emotion and detached as it always became when in battle. “Drones.”

Danny flinched as Sunstreaker zipped around another ball of fire. He needed to find a place to stash Danny and make a stand without her getting mauled.

“Prowl said something about drones, he was talking to Blaster, I think.” The human’s face scrunched up as she tried to remember what it had been she had overheard.

“We need to find better ground to make a stand and hide you.”

The human swallowed hard and nodded, gripping tightly at the handle overhead. “There was a construction site not far from here, I remember seeing it when I drove down to Vegas.”

If Sunstreaker could have nodded he would have, instead he gave a small grunt of acknowledgment. “Let’s hope we can make it that far.” He grumbled as he dodged another ball of fire.

Danny nodded, gripping the handle, if at all possible, tighter. Risking a glance out of the broken window the woman caught a glance of what Sunstreaker could ‘see’ in his radar and scanners; the quadruped beast with glowing amber optics glaring back at them.

It snarled at them as Sunstreaker began to pull ahead of it, the dead amber optics following them whilst Danny’s own brown orbs tracked the beast, horrified by what little she could see, hair flying about as Sunstreaker pushed his engine as hard as he could.

“Sunstreaker. Please go faster.” There was a slight edge to her voice, a panic that hadn’t been there before.

Sunstreaker snarled in response, glad that she couldn’t see the five others hidden in the darkness that stalked them; four behind them, one on either side. The drones were trying to herd them, to push them where they wanted Sunstreaker go.

Swerving again Sunstreaker threw himself wider, skidding across the sand to sideswipe one of the drones. Danny cursed an obscenity as she screwed her eyes shut when gold armour made contact with unpainted silver metal.

The creature snarled at the contact that caused sparks to rise between them, its lower jaw splitting in half, razor sharp denta glistening in the moon light as it hissed at him.

Sunstreaker pulled away from its snapping jaw only to ram into the side of it again, knocking it over. Yowls and yips came from the creature as it fell, tumbling in a cloud of dirt and sand, all claws and denta fighting to right itself.

“Sunny!” Danny managed to gasp out, small fingernails digging into his interior. “The construction site, it’s right there.”

The golden Autobot snarled, engine red lining as they barreled to the large site; a massive hole that would one day be the basement of a strip mall, large scaffolds surrounding it with a pair of large cranes standing tall overhead, the only standing building was a low laying garage looking small in comparison. The thin chain link fence had warnings about being arrested if you were caught inside.

“When we get there,” the Autobot barked. “I’m going to do a three-sixty and transform at the same time. I’m going to dump you while I do this, alright?”

Danny nodded, brown eyes wide and skin waxy. “Alright.”

“You’re going to tuck your head down, put your arms over your head and tuck your legs close to your body then roll with the momentum, alright?”  

“Tuck and roll? Alright, I can do that.” Danny sounded as though she was trying to convince herself more than him.

“Come on, you ran from me for this long this should be easy.” He encouraged, his voice cold as he slipped into a battle ready state, falling beneath the ice of his spark that would allow him to be the cold killer he needed to be.

“Yeah…yeah! A piece of cake.”

They neared the construction site, Sunstreaker’s frame tense with the battle that was about to take place; he could taste the violence in the air.

“Easy.” His voice was still cool and detached yet still managed to pump her up.

She nodded again. “Cake.”

There was a moment of surreal clarity as everything slowed down and happened at half speed.

The construction site was suddenly beside them, the moonlight shining off the dim and dented metal of the fence, causing it to almost glow in the inky black night.

Time sped back up in the next moment and suddenly Sunstreaker was spinning around to face his opponents, his large frame shifting as he dumbed Danny into the dirt as gently as he could, her small body tumbling and bouncing along the sand with dark plumes of sand clouding around her.

Focusing back in on the coming threat Sunstreaker ignored Danny, not watching whether or not she got up after being thrown like a skipping stone across the desert floor.   

The first drone leapt at him head on, all razor sharp denta and claws, its mouth wet with dripping drool. Snarling, Sunstreaker caught the beast, slamming it into the sand as hard as he could, destroying the creature’s shoulder joint and crippling it.

Just as another snarling drone came charging at the golden frontliner Sunstreaker grasped the downed drone by the scruff of its collar, slamming it head first into its companion. Both drones went down in a heap, parts from their heads crushed out from their mechanical skulls, flying out into the desert.

Distantly behind him he could hear Danny gasping from where she landed but she was ignored as he spun to face another drone, freezing by what he saw.

Emerging from the inky blackness of the Nevada night Shockwave materialized. Purple armour gleaming in the light of the moon, single red optic blazing like hell fire. Fear punched through Sunstreaker’s spark, his large powerful frame shuddering as supressed memories bubbled to the surface.

On either side of the purple Decepticon two drones stalked low, their own gleaming optics focused on him, drool dripping from their snarling snouts.

Sunstreaker swallowed hard, getting a grip on himself as he steeled his nerves, pushing down on all those insecurities and old fears. He focused on his rage, his hot burning rage and not the ice cold fear trickling down his spinal struts.

The large helm cocked to the side, the red optic focusing on him; it was like he _knew_ how afraid Sunstreaker was. “Sunstreaker.” The scientist intoned.

Sunstreaker only snarled at the mech and held his ground, that punch of fear finally fading away into blistering rage.

The large helm tipped back, the drone’s helms mimicking Shockwave’s movement. “Bring him to me alive.”

Snarling again Sunstreaker reached into his sub-space for his blaster as the single red optic moved away from his tense, battle ready frame. “Bring me the human as well.”

Hefting up his blaster Sunstreaker widened his stance, optics like shards of black ice as he watched the slowly approaching drones.

“Danny, run and hide!”    

Once again Danny obeyed and Sunstreaker gave another snarl as the remaining four drones charged. Behind him he could hear Danny’s small footsteps running towards the fence.As her footsteps faded into nothing and he heard the chain link fence rattle as she scaled over it, Sunstreaker opened fire on the charging beasts.

Focusing his rapidly warming blaster on the nearest drone the thing fell in a ball of snarling rage as its front legs were torn out from under it, its brethren leaping and bouncing over it and leaving it downed in the dirt. Shifting the barrel of his blaster to face the next drone its razor sharp denta sank into the already damaged armour of his arm. 

Sunstreaker cringed as the drone tried to drag him down, spinning in a tight circle so that his back was facing the other attacking drones. Cold rage washed through the Autobot, icy cobalt optics narrowing in on the drone as its denta sank deep, brushing at his protoform. 

Time slowed down as the two other mobile drones charged, one shooting past him after Danny whilst the other aimed for his exposed and unprotected back. 

Focusing on the beast that gouged and tore at his forearm Sunstreaker went for the beast’s optics, sinking his index and thumb into the glass, unsheathing his claws to destroy them. The drone released his arm with a gurgling howl and Sunstreaker didn't waste his chance as he buried his blaster into its gaping maw and fired. Wires and energon exploded out the back of its head with bits of processor spattering across the ground. 

With the drone hitting the ground too Sunstreaker spun around to catch one in the process of flinging itself at him, razor denta sinking into his side and puncturing his tank with a snarl, the massive canine like head shaking in an attempt to rip Sunstreaker’s side open. 

Snarling like a wild animal Sunstreaker slammed the butt of his blaster into this drone’s helm over and over until the thing let go with a grunt. Flipping the blaster around the Autobot didn't flinch when he opened fire into its helm, blood energon and processor staining the sand. 

The frontliner was already turning before the body hit the ground, icy optics scanning the area for Danny and the beast that had charged after her. He found them easily as the human he was trying to bring home had scaled one of the cranes that were being used to build a mall, Danny perched near the top and curled in a ball as she clung to the thick wires of the crane. 

Below her the drone circled like a shark, red optics focused on her small, curled form, its canine like body leaping up to snap at her feet. With every high jump Danny cursed, curling a little tighter in her ball and away from the snapping denta. 

With a snarl the frontliner began moving, his large powerful frame damaged but the agony ignored as he bolted towards his charge. 

The drone threw itself at the crane, the structure shaking and shuddering, thick cables and wires snapping and falling. Danny shrieked as she slipped from her perch, clinging to the thick metal as she struggled to climb back up.

“Sunstreaker!” Came her terrified voice, screaming out as she tried so desperately to pull herself up.

The frontliner’s whole frame moved with the effort, arms and legs pumping as he headed for Danny, the four legged drone leaping and snapping at her dangling body.

“Sunstreaker!” She struggled to throw her legs up higher and to claw her way back up to safety, the wound sustained so very long ago to her abdominal muscles weakening them, making it so much harder to pull herself back up.

The butt of Sunstreaker’s blaster was pressed against his chest as he ran, firing four shots; the first two balls of brilliant yellow light blowing out the canine like creatures front legs out from under it, the third and fourth ripping through its head and chest.

The creature died with a gurgling cry, its frame rolling away from the crane as Sunstreaker sprinted the last leg to the crane.

Danny dangled optic level, struggling in vain to pull herself up when his large servo scooped her up with a gruff “I’ve got you, let go.” The small human did as she was told and letting go she dropped into his palm, curling into a ball, Sunstreaker’s other servo clinging desperately to his blaster. “We need to go.” He rumbled, turning back to the road and escape, pulling Danny to his chest.

Purple light blinded them and agony burned at the hand that clung to the blaster. With a cry of pain Sunstreaker fell backwards, his servo mangled and broken, useless as the melted blaster fell with a dull thud.  

Shockwave’s massive pede came up, slamming into damaged gold stomach plates, knocking Sunstreaker back and to the ground, dust clouding up around them. Pain vibrating through Sunstreaker’s damaged frame, piercing the ice cold front he had surrounded himself in.

Twisting to drop Danny to the ground, the woman’s small body was already moving to get away from the fighting Cybertronians.

Shockwave’s heel shot out catching the Autobot in the side of the head, blood energon spewing from his mouth with a grunt and a cough. Danny screamed, trying desperately to put some distance between herself and Shockwave as Sunstreaker tried to crawl away from the onslaught of attacks, Shockwave’s pede slamming into the underside of the gold abdominal plating once again, knocking Sunstreaker onto his back with a strangled gasp.

Disoriented, Shockwave managed to pin Sunstreaker by the throat with his pede, his finned helm forced to the side as he was pinned to the sand, the Decepticon’s blaster brushing at the side of Sunstreaker’s head.

“Move and I will decapitate him.” Shockwave’s cold, flat voice addressed Danny.

Sunstreaker grunted, his single good servo gripping at the heavy purple pede at his throat, trying to shove it off as Danny froze, her hands slipping up silently in surrender, a tremble racing down her lean frame.

“A wise choice human.”

The bright red optic slipped back to the struggling Autobot and suddenly Sunstreaker felt a flash of panic, old memories bubbling to the surface; memories of pain and slavery and abuse suddenly slammed into his face once again, his tank tightening and frame freezing in fear. 

“Did you really think I would let you get away again?”

“Get off me!” Sunstreaker hissed, trying to shove Shockwave off him.

“You are far too valuable to me to allow you to get away. Now, we need you for the cause Sunstreaker. For Cybertron, and not just for science.”

Sunstreaker didn't move, couldn’t move as memories overcome his processor in a flash of despair.

_Hands touched him, roughly gripping at his thighs despite his slurred words asking and begging them to stop. A mouth pressed to his in a bruising kiss, holding his helm in place when he tried to twist away._

_"S-stop." His frame refused to cooperate as drugs raced rough his systems, making his bucking hips weaker. "Please stop."_

The here and now slammed back into his processor, Sunstreaker weakly bucking and struggling under Shockwave's pede, his voice broken and full of static. Once again feeling as weak and useless as he had back then when he had been drugged and taken advantage of. “Go fuck yourself. I won’t help you.”

Shockwave’s helm canted. “This plan is most logical. Cybertron needs more warriors, Megatron needs them and I know you are capable of carrying, under the correct circumstances.”

A low, threatening growl rumbled from Sunstreaker’s throat, the panic becoming clearer. “I won’t go back to that!” Came the hiss.    

Shockwave hummed, red optic slipping to Danny’s stunned, trembling form. “I wonder if your little friend knows what you are.”

Danny held still, refusing to allow her curiosity show though whilst she was unable to hide her wide eyed panic. 

Sunstreaker stilled, icy optics narrowing up at Shockwave, the panic bleeding away to rage. “Shockwave!” The Decepticon’s name said with such an air of threat that lesser mechs would have backed down.

Shockwave ignored the Autobot as he focused on Danny, a small flicker of delight at causing the Autobot pain and humiliation like this. “Did you know that he was a whore before the war?”

Danny’s eyes widened then narrowed in suspicion.

Sunstreaker snarled and struggled as Shockwave continued, the Autobot's frame bleeding out from the wound in his side. “My favorite rented whore to be exact." The glittering red optic dipped down to the Autobot. "And how Megatron enjoyed to play with this one. Before the war began this specimen and his twin fought in the gladiator rings and were considered to be some of the greatest fighters. The greatest fighters always fetched the highest price in the berth and they were worth every credit."

"Shut. Up. Shockwave!" Sunstreaker hissed, his struggling growing anew. "I swear to Primus I will fucking kill you!"

The golden mech swallowed the cry of pain as Shockwave's pede lifted, only to come slamming down on his helm once more, crushing his audio fin before returning to pin Sunstreaker by the throat. The Autobot’s helm rang as pain radiated down to his neck cables and shoulders, the large purple helm above canting as though to study its prey more closely. 

"Megatron tried to breed these two, one of many who have tried. Their owners were so desperate for them to carry. Their offspring would have been sold off to the highest bidder." Such an awful, horrifying experience to be explained in so little words and Sunstreaker was disturbed to hear them all over again, to have to relive the worst moments of his life and to have someone else know about them. "But I know the secret to breeding spark twins."

The red orb drew up to observe Danny and her pale, shocked face. All her attitude and cockiness was gone as she watched Sunstreaker struggle weakly against the pede holding him down, dizzy from the attack; as though she suddenly realized that there were things out there to fear beyond Sunstreaker.

"You must breed twins together, merging with both of their sparks at once, and even then there is less than a ten percent chance that one of them will carry." 

Sunstreaker cringed and Danny made a weak, wet noise. She may not know how 'carrying' occurred but she could hazard a guess. 

"Then, if you could get one to carry they would need to spark merge to split the sparkling into two separate sparks." The pede to Sunstreaker's throat pressed in tighter. "They are so weak, twins, since if one falls the other is not far behind but to successfully breed them would grant the Decepticons more cannon fodder for the war." 

The large helm canted back towards Sunstreaker, the Autobot snarling as more and more energon spread around him. "Megatron never knew you had to merge with both to produce a sparkling, although he certainly had an entertaining time trying and the scientific data gathered was worth the risk of losing them." The clawed servo flexed and Sunstreaker was sure if he could have, Shockwave would have grinned. "Besides, after sessions with Megatron they fought harder, more viciously in the rings, prompting their owners to rent them out to me more often. The creds I made betting on their fights alone were more than enough to continue to fund my research."

The red optic tipped back to Danny, mocking in the way only Shockwave could. "The risk of losing them either in the ring or the berth was worth the information gathered.”

Sunstreaker have yet another snarl as his helm dropped away in shame and defeat. 

"You had them raped." Danny whispered roughly, realization suddenly dawning and mixing with the horror of what she was hearing. Her eyes dark in her pale face flickered to Sunstreaker, mouth dropping open in an 'O' of surprise before returning to Shockwave. 

Shame bubbled up from Sunstreaker's chest, humiliation draining the last of the fight from his frame, and for a moment he lay limply under Shockwave's massive pede, his one good servo gripping lightly at the purple metal.

"Your people would call it that but the data we collected was invaluable in how twin bonding worked. It paved the way to future combiner projects." The bright, red optic focused on Danny.  "It was the most logical step." 

It was horrified shock that left Danny standing stone still and numb. The thought that Sunstreaker, the large powerful mech that had driven her crazy and saved her at the same time had been subjected to something so horrifying, so debasing as being a breeder made her skin crawl and her stomach twist. "But...but why?" She croaked, voice broken while a shiver of something ice cold slipped down her spine. 

Shockwave's crimson orb held her for a moment, staring her down. "My plan is not flawed, it is perfectly logical. The twins were rented to be breeders and that is exactly what they will become once more. They are young and strong, able to carry a sparkling to term." 

A black servo with razor sharp claws suddenly latched into Shockwave's knee, Sunstreaker snarling as energon leaked from the corner of his mouth, rage darkening his optics to black. "Because he's a sick freak!" He spat. 

The gun that served as one of Shockwave’s servos rose to slam into the Autobot’s face, sending Sunstreaker back into the cold sand once again with a pained grunt, more blood energon spewing from his mouth, his optics flickering as Danny screamed, the noise muffled by her hands. 

The crimson optic tipped back to Sunstreaker. "It is time to take your proper place once more Sunstreaker. Like all of your kind, you are nothing more than a resource that I may use to save Cybertron."  

The purple helm shook in what could have been mistaken for dismay. "I should have had you in my possession all this time, and I would have had it not been for that Praxian." 

Black optics fired back on line, rage fuelling Sunstreaker's broken frame. "I'll fucking kill you if you touch him!" 

"He will take his place right next to you Sunstreaker, nothing more than a resource for Cybertron, his punishment for taking you from me." 

The claws returned, sinking back into the knee, digging harder and deeper. "You left us for dead! It took them months to nurse us back to health, we were practically dead when Prowl found us!"

"You were treated with such a heavy hand because of your inability to behave. Had you been well behaved like the others you would not have ended up as you did. The mechs who paid for your frames, mechs like Megatron, did not do so to be damaged." 

A cold bitter laugh broke from Sunstreaker. "Right! We should have just allowed ourselves to be, what do the humans call it? Raped? Willingly?" 

Another strike landed on the side of Sunstreaker's head, this one shattering one of his optics, sending him again to the ground with the taste of energon in his mouth. It was with a gurgling laugh that Sunstreaker spat more words at Shockwave. "I'm going to kill you with my bare servos Shockwave." His voice took on gravely rage. "And I'm going to fucking enjoy it."

"Empty words Sunstreaker." The red optic flickered to where Danny had sunk to her knees, lean body bowed over her brown satchel, small body trembling. "Even your pet has given up hope."

Snarling, Sunstreaker bucked and writhed under the heavy purple pede, ice blue optic sliding to where Danny had fallen to her knees.

Sunstreaker's spark twisted; the human was giving up on him, knowing he had failed again. 

"Now that I have you," came Shockwave's cold, monotone voice, "your foolish twin will come looking for you. You will be the bait that brings him home to me." 

Snarling, frame bucking as much as he physically could as he lay pinned, Sunstreaker refused to let the panic bleed through. "You won't get near Sideswipe."

"I will. He will come for you the moment he realizes I have you, and he will walk, willingly, into a trap." The purple helm shook. "This is why love is such a weak emotion, even for one such as you. It makes you easy targets, it makes you easy to manipulate. Sideswipe will come for you because of his foolish love for you, and that love is what will land him next to you in my lab and Megatron's berth."

Sunstreaker made a noise like a wild animal, a threat on the tip of his glossa, ready to spew out hateful words and promises of pain even as more energon began to pool around him, when he caught a small movement out of the corner of his optic. 

Black rage fuelled optics flickered back to Danny as she knelt in the sand, her face pale with distress, dark eyes wide with shock. But in her small hands she held the taser like device that had earlier taken him down, the same device she had stolen from the guard she killed as they fled the science impound.  

She had managed to get the prongs back in place, the device glowing the soft green humans like to use to indicate something was charged, and her plan immediately clicked in his head.

" _Do it_!" He screamed, bracing himself for the pain that was about to come, knowing Shockwave wasn't going to expect an attack. 

It happened quickly but Sunstreaker saw it in slow motion, watching as Danny lifted the taser and aimed with a surprisingly steady hand, the prongs flying through the air and embedding themselves into the lower leg of shining purple armour. 

Jerking in surprise, the bright red orb glanced down to see the tiny prongs that stuck into his lower leg, and for a moment Shockwave couldn't comprehend what he was seeing, didn't understand what was about to happen.

Grinning through the pain, blood energon leaking from the corner of his mouth, Sunstreaker braced himself and pain shot through him as electricity coursed through his frame, Shockwave acting as a conductor.

The purple Decepticon shouted in surprise and agony, his frame arching and off balancing, the gold Autobot gritting his denta, refusing to utter a word of pain as the power continued to course through them.  

Just as suddenly as the pain burst through their systems it was gone, leaving the two Cybertronians panting and stunned, dazed as they both tried to get their bearings. 

Sunstreaker recovered first, throwing his whole weight to one side and shoving Shockwave off him. The single optic Decepticon stumbled off the Autobot’s frame with a grunt, bringing his arms up to protect his face as he fell.

A sudden burst of energy and the need to survive had Sunstreaker moving with the momentum, throwing his lesser frame weight on top of Shockwave.  

The Decepticon landed on his back with Sunstreaker straddling his waist, damaged gold knees digging into the cold sand, forgetting all about the damage done to his frame. Leaning over the momentarily stunned Decepticon Sunstreaker's undamaged arm pulled back and with a grunt of effort he slammed it back into Shockwave's helm. 

The glittering red optic shattered on contact, shards of red glass and energon scattered across the ground. There was no delight as the black fist pulled back again before Sunstreaker put his whole weight behind his next attack, his fist imbedding into the purple armour. It was purely mechanical, instinctual; Sunstreaker allowing himself to become the mindless killing machine others thought him to be as he did as much damage as he physically could. He didn't think, he didn't feel, Sunstreaker just hit until his single good servo broke, his digits snapping like twigs, wires and pistons sticking out. But even then he didn’t stop hitting Shockwave, didn't feel the pain that was sure to come from his broken servo.

Managing to get his pedes under him Shockwave bucked with all his own weight, toppling Sunstreaker from his frame, sending him over his helm and face first into the dirt. Despite being blind and injured the purple Decepticon didn’t squander his chance and stumbled to his pedes, the prongs jutting from his leg as he swayed, moving quickly back to the road, ignoring both the human, who was crouched low to the ground trying to be small and unnoticeable, and Sunstreaker who as injured as he was, was determine to get back onto his own pedes. Blinded, Shockwave didn’t stand a chance against Sunstreaker when he was so enraged, critically injured or not. 

Comm crackling to life Shockwave's voice was cold. ::I require a ground bridge Soundwave.:: 

There was a long pause before Soundwave's monotone voice crackled back. ::Negative. The energon required to perform such a function is non-existent.:: 

Shockwave kept walking, his scanners sensing Sunstreaker making it to his pedes, swaying a little, and he knew if the Autobot got a hold of him a second time he would not be so fortunate to walk away again. 

::This is an emergency.:: A very deliberate pause. ::Megatron has already agreed to use the energon for my return.:: 

Although his voice was cold and calm Shockwave's threat did not go unnoticed. 

::Understood.:: 

Even without the inflection in Soundwave’s equally monotone voice Shockwave could sense the irritation that Soundwave no doubt felt, but the underlings could go hungry for a while to ensure his safe return. 

While the green swirling pool of light that was a ground bridge spiralled open, Shockwave ignored Soundwave’s irritation, he would deal with Soundwave later; after all Shockwave knew who Megatron favoured. 

It was with that thought that Shockwave disappeared into the mass of green light, heading to see Hook about his injuries, the ground bridge only working one way as they simply didn’t have the energon to reverse the flow in order to send more troops to collect Sunstreaker and his human.

The Autobot would escape this day but next time Sunstreaker would _not_ be so lucky.

*

Sunstreaker forced himself to stay on his pedes, panting and swaying with his exertion before screaming in wordless rage into the warm night air, the need to finish the kill driving him on; he _needed_ to kill Shockwave. 

"S-Sunny?" Came the hesitant, almost fearful voice from below him. It was small enough to not be a threat and it drew Sunstreaker’s ice cold optics down to Danny; the human slowly approaching as she rung her small hands.

Afraid as she was, as nervous as she appeared, her brown eyes were warm and unafraid of him, concern filling them every time she glanced at the wound left by the drone.

“What…what was that?”

Still riding the killing edge but beginning to weaken from the energon loss, Sunstreaker sunk to his knees. “Ground bridge.” He rumbled, broken servos coming to grasp at the gaping, bleeding hole in his side. “ _Primus!”_ He hissed.

Danny instantly forgot about whatever a ground bridge was, spinning around to look for something she could use to help Sunstreaker and spotting the small garage.

“Sunstreaker,” Danny gasped, her small body already moving towards it. “You need to make it to the garage. There’s gotta be something I can use to plug that hole. Clamps or…or…a…a welder or something.”

Panting as the hurt began to fade into a numbness Sunstreaker nodded, slowly making his way back to his pedes, his energy rapidly draining as more and more brightly colored energon ran down his waist and legs. His rage faded as the numbness took over and he focused on his pedes, putting one in front of the other, slowly following Danny and her gentle encouragement.

It took far too long for the pair of them to make it to the little garage and Sunstreaker didn’t bother wasting time in allowing Danny to pick the lock, he merely reached down with a broken servo and pulled the garage door off, the weak metal crumpling despite his waning strength.

Danny shot inside, already looking for something to use to stop the bleeding as Sunstreaker followed her inside, his large, powerful frame bending and hunching as he followed her inside, having to crawl to make it to even a laying position.

Exhaustion overwhelmed him suddenly; between living on rations as he chased Danny, lack of proper recharge and now the attack from Shockwave, Sunstreaker’s frame was unable to continue and once he made his way inside the garage his arms gave out and he collapsed face first into the cold paved floor. He heard Danny scream his name in a panic but it was lost as he blacked out, finding a little peace at long last.

TBC…

**Authors Note Continued:** Again, I would like to thank SunnySideofBlue. She helped me plan out why the twins failed to spark and that Shockwave knew why they were failing to spark, hence prolonging their suffering. It was all for science after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors Note Continued: Again, I would like to thank SunnySideofBlue. She helped me plan out why the twins failed to spark and that Shockwave knew why they were failing to spark, hence prolonging their suffering. It was all for science after all.


	10. The Long Road Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sunstreaker makes it home, and Danny deals with the consequences of her actions. Sort of.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Important Information
> 
> “Blah” Speaking
> 
> ::Blah:: comm. link
> 
> ‘Blah’ bonded speech
> 
> ‘Blah’ thinking
> 
> Astrosecond- 2.5 earth Seconds
> 
> Klik- 150 earth seconds/ 2.5 earth Minutes
> 
> Orn- 150 earth minutes/ 2.5 earth Hours
> 
> Joor- 60 earth hours/2.5 earth Days
> 
> Metacycle- 17.5 earth days/2.5 earth Weeks
> 
> Vorn- 10 earth weeks/2.5 earth months
> 
> Stellercycle-30 earth months/2.5 years
> 
> Breem-slang for a moment/minute.
> 
> Night Cycle: star down to star up
> 
> Day Cycle: Star up to star down
> 
> Authors Note: Well this is finally it. The last chapter. It’s been a long haul to get here, and with my promotion I’m hoping to have more time to write then I did before J That means that the third instalment will be started very soon. There is a little one shot that I’ve completed between this story and the next one.
> 
> Thank you to Darkness_Rising for doing the beta work on this chapter, and thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed and encouraged up to this point. It means a lot to me and without your support, I don’t know if I would have been able to finish this story.
> 
> Disclaimer: I own only my OC’s, nothing else.

Floating in a haze of dull pain and dizzinessSunstreaker fought his way back to consciousness, but it was hard, so very difficult when he was laying in the comfortable nothingness of being numb. He bubbled slowly into consciousness for brief moments only to fade back under into the inky blackness with brief glimpses of what was happening around him.

In afoggy haze, like he was drunk, he heard Dannytalking softly to him, her small hands on his cheeks as she encouraged him to hang on, to wake up. He heard her small voice promising to keep him safe and that she was going to help him.

How, Sunstreaker didn’t know. He didn’t know how she could possible help him never mind keep him safe,however she had not abandoned him. Danny had stayed by his side and not left him alone to suffer whatever fate would throw at him and a small curl of some kind of gratefulness unfurled in his spark as he faded back into the comfort of unconsciousness.

*

He woke again briefly to a burning pain in his side and groaning, Sunstreaker tried to swat at whatever was hurting him, too weak to even make his arm work properly. His movements were sluggish and disoriented, his optics dim and flickering in pain.

“S-stahp.” His words slurred, his disoriented movement landing his arm around Danny’s slim form.

She looked up at him, a mask carefully pulled over her face as it tipped back up, grief and regret filling her features. “Easy Sunny, I know it hurts but I need to stop the bleeding.”

“Bleeding?” he questioned; it was getting harder and harder to think.    

“Yeah, Sunstreaker you’re pretty hurt. I need to plug these holes and I know it hurts but I need to close lines, but it’s only until we get home, then I’ll take you to Ratchet.”

“Ratch?” His vision was becoming hazy again, swimming as he tried to focus on the human at his side.

“Sunstreaker, stay with me buddy, I’ll get us home. You’ve just got to hang-“

Her words were lost as his vision blacked out and his frame succumbed to his damage once more.

*

Cold washed over Sunstreaker as hepulled himself from the comforting dark of near stasis lock; if he did fall into that trap he wouldn’t wake without assistance and being lost out here, the chances of getting help were slim to none. 

With a soft groan Sunstreaker forced his optic to boot up, a long string of errors flooding his HUD. Shivering, the Autobot brushed them aside as his one optic attempted to flicker on, sparking through the cracks. The functioning one lit up dimly, pale blue with energon loss and pain.

He coughed, energon splattering across the pavement as he forced himself up, leaning onto an elbow. Pain spread through his whole frame, every node on fire and exhaustion threatened to drag him back into darkness.

Glancing around he found himself alone and Sunstreaker’s spark tightened in panic. He opened his mouth, spitting static, groaning and feeling sick as he fought to call out. It took a moment and several deep swallows to clear his vents, feeling panicked when he tasted energon on the back of his glossa, but eventually Sunstreaker managed to call out for the human.  “D-Danny?”

It was croaky and weak, and he was suddenly so very alone.

“Danny?” he rasped.

He was alone again, damaged and alone and no one was coming for him. No one even knew he was here and he was going to be found then torn apart by those humans.

Sunstreaker pressed against the bond with Sideswipe, afraid and desperate. He _needed_ his twin right then but emptiness met him. He whimpered a little, pressing harder into the bond, praying to Primus that Sideswipe would feel his need for him and would drop the block and take him back into his spark.

But there was nothing.

A rare moment of grief overwhelmed the gold twin and he allowed himself to sink back to the floor, his nose pressedagainst the hard pavement he lay on. “ _Frag_ _git!_ ” he hissed.

He felt sickand suddenly very stupid for believing that anyone, especially a _human_ _,_ would stick around to help him, especially when evenhis twin had blocked him out an  forgotten him. Danny was likely long gone, leaving him here to die in the desert.

Emotion swelled and his spark writhed as he gasped in panic, suddenly hyperventilating. _He had been left behind and was going to die alone in the desert!_

“Sunstreaker?” Her voice was small and worried but it drew his damaged face up.Danny was pale but her eyes dark and full of determination. “Are you okay?”

Dannyclosed the door behind her and Sunstreaker was so shocked to see her still here that he found nothing fitting to say, and he merely blinked at her in surprise.

Her head shook, that damn pony tail swinging behind her as she stalked towards him. “I’ve tried to call Callie but her cell went to voice mail. I’ve called Epps, same thing. I’ve tried Lennox, nothing. I called the damn _base_ ,” her hands fell on his side where the worst of his damage was, examining, her voice edging towards panic. “And they hung up on me! I even called Homeland Security and they don’t believe me.”

Panicked dark eyes lifted to Sunstreaker’s pale blue optics. “No one is fucking picking up and we’re on our own!”

“You d-didn’t leave me here.” His vocaliser spat static but he managed to string together the words.

Her small face scrunched in confusion, her head tilting. “Well, yeah. Why would I leave you?”

“Everyone leaves me behind.” He rasped, his arms beginning to shake with the effort of keeping his face off the floor.

Danny’s face fell, her head dropping, shadows covering her face. There was a long pause before she spoke again. “Sideswipe hasn’t left you behind.”

“Chose you.” He rasped out. Primus, he felt so sick, so weak. He wanted to recharge again but he wanted Sideswipe to be curled behind him, holding him, he refused however, to show that particular moment of weakness.

“Friendship isn’t about choosing one over another Sunstreaker. Swipe, you and I can be friends. You don’t have to feel left out.” Danny muttered, eyes back on the wide wound in his side. “Sideswipe didn’t choose me, he just made a friend.”

“Don’t have very many friends.” Sunstreaker muttered after a moment as he fought off another wave of nausea and sickness. “Everyone says I’m _abrasive_.”

Danny paused, risking a glance up andcatching the look of hurt. It caused her own guilt to wash over her; they had not been kind to each other.

“Don’t even know why I’m telling you all this. Fragging glitched.” He muttered, trying to find a comfortable position to lay in, but unable to he kept himself propped up on one elbow.

Danny’s hands were pressed flat against his armour. “I wouldn’t call you abrasive.” She told him in earnest. “A little sensitive maybe.” She flashed him a soft grin. “A little on the angrier side of things, but you’re also protective, loyal and proud. And if they are too blind to see that, well…” she paused, her hands coming off his plating to wave around her. “Screw them! You’ve got me and Sideswipe anyways.”

With a nod of finality the little human went back to planning how to get them home, her hands soft on his plating once again, her face screwed up in concentration. 

Sunstreaker huffed a small laugh, shot pain following through his frame and allowed himself to sink back to the floor. “Tired.” He muttered, optic flickering as he refused to admit how it made him feel when she implied he was a friend.

Nodding, Danny heaved a sigh. “I know you are buddy. Just need to hang on a little longer though. I’m going to find a way to get us home.”

Sunstreaker sighed, optic flickering on and off. He knew there was only one way they were getting home at this point, only one way they were going to survive this. One of them needed to get back to the _Ark_. “Just go.” He muttered.

Danny looked up confused, her head tilting. “What?”

“Leave me. If you start walking now you can be at base by tomorrow night.”

Danny gave him a shocked, blank stare. “What?”

He growled, feeling so tired. “Walk home Danny. Take care of Swipe for me.”

Shock faded into anger. “If I leave you’llhave no one to watch your back. You’ll be alone and those scientists will find you and tear you apart!” Her voice edged into panic. “And if they don’t Shockwave will!”

“All the more reason for you to get going. No use both of us being caught again, I can take whatever they throw at me. Just get to Prime and tell him that,” he swallowed, still tasting energon. “That Shockwave is here andabout the scientists. They need to know.”

“Sunstreaker.”

“I can survive the dissection. Just get to Prime and come back for me.” He muttered weakly.

Danny stared up at him, stunned. “Yeah, okay. Or we could _not_ abandon each other.”

“We will both be caught then.”

“Remind me to add self-sacrificing to your list!” Danny spat. Her head shook no. “You’re hurt, if they rip you apart now, Sunstreaker, you might not make it and I’velost too many friends to leave you behind.”   

Danny paused, looking over his damaged frame before she began nodding. “And I know how I’m going to get us home.” She said with an air of determination.

A wave of sickness washed over him again and Sunstreaker’s gold plating began to tremble under Danny’s hand. “What are you going to do?” he spat, managing to drudge up sarcasm. “Carry me home?”  

Danny smirked up at him as she moved to the office of the garage. “Actually, that’s exactly what I am going to do.”

*

Sunstreaker managed to stay conscious as he watched Danny with a fair amount of amusement, despite feeling sick and hurt. Danny moved as quickly as she could after making another call to a ‘friend who owes her’.

On some level Sunstreaker was concerned about that, knowing what kind of people Danny usually called ‘friends’.

Danny moved with an air of efficiently, something that surprised him from the human, as she dragged a tarp she had found from the garage to cover his pedes which stuck out of the small garage and when she finished, Danny tucked her satchel under his chest, asking him to keep it safe before quickly moving to turn down the lights of the garage.

A single light remained lit, the one to the entrance; a small pool of bright light in the darkness. The light keptSunstreaker’spedes in the shadows but the spotlight is where Danny chose to stand.

Over his shoulder Sunstreaker could see her standing very still, leather jacket on, muscular arms crossed over her chest as she waited.

“Hey Sunstreaker?” she called back to him.

“What?” his voice was raspy and barely carried.

“If this doesn’t go well can you drudge up enough energy to scare some humans off?” she didn’t sound nervous, just merely asking a question.

“Are we expecting problems?” Came his demanding question, his helm still spinning a little with nausea.

There was a long pause as Danny thought it over. “No. But…you know. Just in case. It’s been that sort of night.”

“What sort of night is that?” Sunstreaker coughed a laugh.

“The kind of night where we don’t get a break.”

Sunstreaker laughed again, the laugh sending a painful shudder down his frame, caused him to cough, blood energon spattering across the pavement.

Danny shifted nervously, glancing behind her with concern on her face.

“I’m fine.” He rasped. “I’m fine.”   

Lights suddenly appeared down the road, one set to a low laying car the other looked higher, from a truck.

“So, do you have the energy to do it?”

“Honestly?”

“Honestly.” She confirmed.

“No.” he told her simply, the truth bothering him that he was so helpless, so vulnerable.

Her head bobbed in a small nod as the two vehicles began to slow down. “Alright, sit tight.”

Sunstreaker barked a bitter laugh. “What else am I going to do?”

He saw her glance over her shoulder again, throwing him a small smirk. “Still awfully good at bitching.”

Snorting, Sunstreaker forced his frame to still as much as he could whilst he continue to watch her. “Well, someone’s got to.”

He could only imagine the snarky remark that was begging to slip from Danny’s lips but she fell silent and still as the two vehicles pulled into the work site, coming to the garage, the bright, harsh lights blinding Danny and Sunstreaker.

The drivers did it on purpose, intimidation, Sunstreaker knew.

Danny didn’t flinch, didn’t even lift her hand to shield her eyes just stood stock still as the lights turned off. Her own version of intimidation.  

Tension built as two men jumped from the vehicles, one a small unassuming car, the other a large flatbed truck. As they did Sunstreaker fought with himself to hold himself still whilst being ready to fight in case he had to, despite being so injured. He would defend himself, and Danny, if necessary; yet he doubted he would be able to gather the energy to do so; so he had to trust in Danny this time.

Two humans, both males, were shadows in the darkness as they approached. The manwho jumped from the truck so much larger than his companion.

Danny’s head tilted and she beamed a grin at the approaching men. “Vinneee!”  she elongated the sound of his name in the familiarity of old friends.

Vinny stepped into the pool of light with Danny, looking slightly unhappy. Four heads taller thanthe woman he had to bend his head down to look at her, his dark lips twitched into a grin. He was large and muscular, his t-shirt showing the rippling muscles in his arms, his smooth skin the colour of dark coffee. “Danny.” He intoned gently, his grin turning into a wide smile.

A smaller, younger man stepped into the light and he beamed down at Danny. He looked to be so much younger thanshe yet still towered over her. He looked very similar to Vinny and Sunstreaker guessed they must be brothers.

“Danny!” the younger one chirped happily, wrapping his thick arms around her slim body and squeezing her tight in a hug.

Laughing, Danny wrapped her own arms around him. “Oh mah gawd! Johnny! You’ve grown up so much!”

Johnny let her go, his large hands falling to his side, the excited smile still so very bright. “So, umm Danny.” He sounded very, very young. “How’s Liz?”

Danny cracked a smile but before any response could be given Vinny cut him off. “What do you want Danny?”

Dark brown eyes lifted to Vinny’s, her smile turning to a smirk. “Liz is good Johnny. Send her an e-mail.” She never took her eyes from Vinny’s face. “She will be glad to hear from you.”

If at all possible Johnny’s grin grew wider.

“I need to borrow your truck Vin. I’ll bring it right back tomorrow morning.”

The small smirk fell from Vinny’s face, a firm, annoyed line cutting across his face. “No. You know what Danny? Not just no, it’s going to be _hell_ no.”

“Vinny.” Danny started, her tone a little pleading.

“Danny! Word is Dennis has been tracking you and has been threatening all your allies and friends who might help you.” Rage was barley contained in the large man’s dark eyes. “I have a baby now Danny and that bastard threatened me.”

Danny’s own eyes flashed with her own rage. “He threatened you!”

The large man nodded slowly, never once taking his eyes from her small form.

Danny licked her teeth, eyes flicking up and left as she thought. “Dennis is dead now.”

Dark brows drew together. “You’re sure?”

“Watched him die myself.” She said, a forced airiness. “So, your truck. I need it and you owe me.”

Vinny frowned at her, his head shaking no. “Forget it. I’ve gone straight Danny, I’m not risking my new life.”

Danny’s head tilted a little higher. “It’s not illegal. I need a favor and I will have it returned in the morning.”

“Danny…. “

“I kept you out of jail.” Danny interjected quickly. “Remember that time when we did that job on Freemont? And the fucking car _broke_ down. Remember how the cops moved in on us quickly?”

Vinny made an angry noise in the back of his throat but he let Danny continue.

“Remember when we split up to get away and how they targeted you?” Vinny looked uncomfortable, he shifted a little.

“I remember Danny.”

“Remember how I broke those car windows to set off all those car alarms? Drawing their attention away from you so I could take the heat.”

Vinny licked his teeth. “I remember. And I know I owe you a favor, but not at the cost of dragging me back into _your_ world. My family is too important.”

“It’s not my world any more Vinny. I just need to borrow your truck, that’s all. No dragging you back in.”

“I know you’re are back in. Callie may not be but everyone has heard about you running all over Vegas, with a cop of some kind.”

“Cop?”

Sunstreaker could hear the confusion in her voice.

“Some kind of undercover type. Drives a yellow Lambo. Everyone’s talking about how you’re going down.”         

Danny stared up at him blankly before she burst out laughing, unable to help herself.

Vinny, however, was not so impressed. “It’s not funny Danny. Between Dennis and the cop I’m surprised you’re not dead or in jail!”

Danny was still laughing, much to Vinny’s annoyance.

“Danny.” There was a calm sort of warning to his tone that was still ignored as she giggled.

“He’s not a cop.”

“Then what is he?”

Danny managed to calm herself but she still smirked up at the two men. “That’s a complicated question.”

Danny glanced over her shoulder, looking into the gloom for Sunstreaker’s dim glow of his optic.

Her head twisted back to Vinny.

“Vin I need to borrow your truck.”

Vinny opened his mouth again but Danny quickly cut him off. “I trust you.” She managed to blurt out.

Vinny heaved a sigh, casting his younger brother a side long glance. “I trust you too Danny but like I said, I have a family now. I will not endanger them. Not for you.”

Danny stared up at him for a moment before shaking her head. “No, Vin. I mean I trust you with this.” She paused, glancing back at Sunstreaker again. “There are people out there trying to hurt me, but not because I’ve been jacking cars. I won’t let them hurt you or your family and so long as you don’t breathe a word of this to anyone, no one will know you helped me.”

“That is not comforting.”

“It’s not supposed to be but it is the truth.” Danny sighed before she called out. “Sunstreaker. Come here a second.”   

Sunstreaker froze, his frame going still at Danny’s request.

Vinny’s eyes narrowed on her with suspicion. “Thought you’re here alone.” He all but accused.

Danny shrugged, still looking into the gloom of the garage. “Sunstreaker, if you want to go home get your ass out here.”

His working blue optic flickered in annoyance and he fought with himself to stay on line. He managed to rev his engine into a weak snarl, his way of telling Danny _and fuck you too._

Danny snorted, getting the message as Vinny and Jonny both took a step back, Vinny shoving his younger brother behind him a little.

Nothing happened and the crickets resumed their chirping.

Rolling her eyes Danny huffed in annoyance. “Please, Sunstreaker, need some help here.”

Laying on the floor of the garage Sunstreaker heaved a sigh. “Thought you had this all handled?” he spat weakly at her, static spitting.

Vinny took another step back even before Sunstreaker began to move andDanny flashed a smirk over her shoulder. “Don’t be so tense, he’s on our side.”

Sunstreaker forced himself to his hands and knees, moving slowly he backed his way out of the garage. He paused a moment, his optic off -lining as vertigo hit him and he fought to not purge.

“You okay?” Came Danny’s hesitant tone.

“Fine.” He ground out between clenched denta as his head spun, refusing to admit his weakness.

Standing, finding the strength to push himself to his full height, he slowly turned as the two new humans gasped and backed away. He took a few slow steps towards the small group, his leg coming into the pool of light, his upper body still shrouded in shadows; his single optics bright in the darkness.

The two humans tipped their heads up, horror and fear spreading across their faces.

“Oh shit.” Vinny muttered only loud enough to barely be heard.

“It’s okay!” Danny said quickly, her hands up. “He’s okay, he’s on our side.”

“He!” Vinny shouted at her, and suddenly Sunstreaker’s strength gave out on him.

His knees hit the sand and he caught himself with his broken hand to stop himself from face planting into the ground. Coughing brought more energon to his lips, spattering into the sand he tried so desperately not collapse into it.

“Sunstreaker!” Danny nearly whined, her small hands falling to the armour of his arm. “Are you alright?”

His body dry heaved, and he held back the need to purge the little energon he still had in his tanks. “Fine.” He croaked, ignoring the acidic burn in the back of his intake.

Danny made a weak noise in the back of her throat, prompting Sunstreaker to peel his optic open, the light a pale blue in his distress. He offered her a weak smirk, trying to comfort her. “I’m fine.” He said again.

An uncertain look meet his weak smirk that turned into a grimace.

“Danny?” Came Vinny’s weak voice. “What the fuck man? Is that a robot?”

Fingers curled a little tighter into the seams of Sunstreaker’s armour, almost protectively. “Alien actually.”

Dark eyes blinked up at Sunstreaker, Vinny recovering so much quicker than his younger brother.

“And he’s hurt Vin. We were caught by these scientists and they tried to perform a vivisection. We got away and were attacked by another alien.” Danny heaved a huffed sigh, feeling so very small and helpless. “I need to get him back to base so that his medic can help him.”

“Oh my fuck.” Was all Jonny could get out, his mouth hanging open in utter shock at the sight of Sunstreaker’s damaged form.

Vinny suddenly found some bravado. “So tell me Sunstreaker, has Danny been a pain in your ass?”

Danny’s face fell as her eyes narrowed into an unamused glare. “Oh haha.” She dead panned.

“Since day one.” Sunstreaker managed to croak out, tasting the blood energon on the back of his glossa.

Vinny barked an amused laugh at Sunstreaker’s words and the flat look Danny gave them. “You and me both buddy. You and me both.”

“Vinny, please, we need your help, I can’t carry him home on my own.” Heaving a sigh Vinny looked like he was teetering between caving and walking away; on wanting to help and minding his own business. “I’ll pay you two G’s to borrow your truck for the night. It will cover any calls you might get and if anyone looks into it, it will look like I paid for the use of the truck.” Danny added.

Sunstreaker felt a weak flair of surprise at that, knowing that Danny had done all she had for her cousin to buy the horses back.

Vinny sighed and licked his teeth. “Danny I don’t care about the money, I just can’t have any of this shit at my front door.”

“And you won’t. I’m just renting the truck. Hell, you can claim it stolen and I’ll have a police officer return it.”

Giving her an unbelieving look Vinny crossed his arms. “And you have access to that?”

“How are you both okay with this?” Jonny asked, still stunned as he stared at Sunstreaker.

“Jonny, he’s an alien, we’ve seen way weirder shit than an alien.” Vinny said evenly, not breaking stride as he eyed Sunstreaker’s damage. “Do you have access to a cop Danny?”

“I do.” She responded, sounding confident. “The people who are helping us have connections and they can help you.”

He slowly blinked at her. “So aliens have the cops in their back pocket?”

Danny grinned. “No worse than when we paid them off.”

“Seriously, how are you two so chill with this?”

“Jonny.” Danny snapped, sounding exasperated. “Did you really think we were alone in the universe? Don’t be silly. Now pull your head out of your ass and get with the program.” Her eyes turned back to Vinny. “So, the truck?”

“Where are you from?” Dark eyes still wide, Jonny started to find his tongue.

“Cybertron.” Sunstreaker ground out, still fighting the vertigo. “Guys,” the two other humans looked up at him, both wearing concerned looks. “I’m not going to be up much longer. If you are going to help us, just fracking do it.”  

Vinny and Danny shared a look, Danny’s head tilting to the side in question.

“What’s Cybertron like?” Johnny asked, the shock fading to awe.

“Dead.” Sunstreaker ground out, his head starting to spin, feeling very sick.

Jonny’s face fell, his head tipping down. “Oh.” He said quietly.

Vinny’s shoulders lowered with a sigh. “Isn’t Cybertron like a Black Eyed Peas thing?”

Danny snorted, shifting her weight back onto her heels as she crossed her arms. “See, I said the same thing.”

Nodding, Vinny huffed a small laugh. “Aright. Have your cop friend bring her back in a few days. We’ll report the truck stolen in the morning. So nothing can be brought back to us.”

Danny grinned. “Thanks Vinny.”

His dark eyes glanced up to Sunstreaker before drifting back to Danny. “I’m not doing it for you. Your friend needs help, so this makes us even.”

Danny grinned as she reached out to shake his hand. “Very even Vinny, thanks.”

Taking Danny’s much smaller hand Vinny shook it before looking up at Sunstreaker. “Come on Sunstreaker, let’s get you on the truck and home.”

Panting, Sunstreaker nodded his thanks before pushing to his feet once more, swaying a little before he caught himself. The humans braced themselves to run should he fall, not wanting to be crushed.

His movements were slow, the humans giving him a healthy amount of room should he fall whilst limping to the flatbed truck before he collapsed onto it. Giving an exhausted sigh Sunstreaker knew he would soon be home.

*

Sunstreaker’s optics flickered weakly online, immediately snapping offline as bright, blinding light caused a stabbing pain, like needles into his optics.

He didn’t remember passing out on the flatbed, his large frame going limp as Danny, Vinny and Johnny strapped him to the flat surface. Nor did he remember moving down the highway at speeds not safe for a truck of its size and shape as Dannyred lined the engine to get him home.

Suddenlyhe could hear her, Danny yelling aggressively at someone, using foul language and name calling to get her own way. Damaged vents flicked opened to take a gasping inhale of warm desert air, his optic slowly flickering back online to see who Danny was yelling at.

They had bound him tightly to the truck to ensure he didn’t fall off and had he not been so hurt he could have snapped those metal bonds, but he was still able to lift his head enough to just see the tips of the _Ark_ _’s_ engines.

He smiled softly at the sight before he allowed himself to sink back to the metal he lay on; _he was home_.

Sunstreaker heared Danny’s voice grow louder, becoming more aggressive as her anger grew. Her words more foul, insults more creative as she demanded to see the Prime and Captain Lennox.  She demanded Ratchet as she clearly had an injured Autobot here, and the guard had _better open the fucking gate._

Sunstreaker heard the radio from the guard house eventually crackle to life before the gate to the base finally begin to move as it opened, Danny spitting one last vile insult at the poor abused guard before she put the truck into gear.

The nauseous feeling came back as the truck began to move, Sunstreaker’s frame swaying with it, lurching over every bump, making his helm spin and world tilt.

Then just as quickly the motions stopped and Danny was out of the truck,undoing the binds that held him in place, first unlocking them all then climbing up to the flatbed with him to drag them off his frame. Sunstreakerdidn’t care as the heavy metal bands were dragged over his frame, gouging the dull yellow paint further; he was already so damaged and beaten, what were a few more scratches?

A hiss indicated the _Ark_ doors opening, the sounds of running meeting his audials as Danny yelled for Sideswipe.

Suddenly his twin was with him, his cobalt optics wide with panic and fear, hands shaking as one fell over the wound in Sunstreaker’s side, the other cupping his cheek, thumb brushing under his damaged optic.

“Sunny.” He whispered softly, as he gazed at his twin, frame shaking.

“Swipe.” Sunstreaker managed to croak, energon catching at the corners of his mouth.

The blocks were finally dropped and Sunstreaker sighed with content as his twin's spark filled his once more. Relaxing into Sideswipe’s hold and finally able to feel him, Sunstreaker allowed himself to slip back into the darkness, knowing he was safe and back home.

Danny had brought him home.

*

Guilt was not something Danny was accustomed to feeling; and she had done many things in her life that should have left her stewing in that particular feeling.

Before Callie wanted to go straight they had lied, cheated and stolen. Paid off police officers and taken bribes themselves, and destroyed anything that stood in their way. They had come out of many scrapes on top and not only had they merely survived living in a literal dog-eat-dog world, they had thrived.

Living day by day had been the norm for them with no thoughts to the future; after all, when one could be caught up in a gun fight at any given moment in a kill or be killed situation, one simply didn’t think about tomorrow.

Danny was not a good person, that much she knew, and she knew that she should feel far guiltier about the things she had done in the past than she truly did. Danny had ruined peoples lives before now, even ending some and it had been done in the name of protection, to keep herself and her family safe.

Normal people, she had always assumed, would feel guilty about such things but Danny could never drudge up such feelings for anyone beyond her sisters and cousinsand had always believed that she was just not normal; that there must be something wrong with her, something damaged.

Yet she felt guilty for all she had done to Sunstreaker. Danny felt _bad_ for lighting him on fire and shooting him in the face, and felt even worse for making him feel as though he didn’t belong.

Sighing, Danny allowed her shoulders to sink a little lower as she watched the golden warrior still in stasis lock from the damage inflicted by Shockwave. Sunstreaker’s frame had been repaired and Ratchet had assured her that all he needed was some time to rest.

The spark monitor bleeped softly in the background as Danny took time, in the peace and quiet she finally had, to reflect on eventsof the last three weeks. The answers to her current guilt were right there for all to see, when somewhere between Sunstreaker saving her from Dennis and fighting with Shockwave, Danny had genuinely began to like Autobot.

The words the Danny had fed Sunstreaker about wanting to be his friend surprised her then and they still surprised her now as she watched over his rest, like a small, yippy dog guarding their injured master.

Heaving another sigh Danny leaned back into her chair, pressing the heels of her hands into her eyes.

“He will wake up.” Prowl said softly from the other side of the med berth, icy blue optics flickering across the data pad he read.

Danny huffed and slouched lower into her chair. “I know.” She muttered, sounding very much like a spoilt child, she just wished it would happen sooner because she felt that she needed to apologise again, to really make things right between them, and between Sunstreaker and Sideswipe.

“Then why are you stressing so?” came Prowl’s soft voice again.

Brown eyes flickered up, grateful for Prowl’s presence. Danny had not left Sunstreaker’s side since she had been allowed back into the med bay, and always accompanied by either Sideswipe, Prowl or Jazz.

Whereas Sideswipe always had a nervous, worried energy about him, and Jazz had looked at her almost accusingly, Prowl had always been calm. Not one to judge.

That was not to say that he hadn’tgiven Danny a dressing down for her stupid behaviour because he had, and his words still stung, but Prowl had said his piece and gotten over it and now it was time to move forward and help Sunstreaker in any way they could.

Danny didn’t doubt, however, that if Sunstreaker told Prowl to get rid of her, Prowl would pitch her from the medbay before she could even launch a proper protest.

“Just wish he would wake up already.” She pouted. “I’ve got things to say to him and it’s been like five days.”

Prowl nodded, not once looking up from his data pad.

Five days ago Danny had told Prime and Lennox about the scientists and Shockwave. Five days ago Callie had blackened Danny’s eye for being so stupid before pulling her into a bear hug and demanding she not do something so dumb again.

Danny had not mentioned the fire nor the shotgun wound.

Four days ago Lennox had led a team to dismantle Dr. Hemmen’s laboratory, only to find an empty husk of a shell, the building abandoned and everything cleared out; including the bodies that Danny and Sunstreaker had left in their bid for freedom.  

Danny hadn’tbeen able to stop the shaking of her hands when Lennox told her they didn’t find anything, leaving the Autobots with another threat to concern themselves over.

Three days ago, after Danny had been released from the humans medical ward and the doctors assured her she wasn’t going to collapse, Callie had shown her the horses, makingDanny’s entire mission a moot point since Thundercracker had done what she could not, and brought the horses back.  

Three days ago was also when Sargent Epps and Prowl returned Vinny’s flatbed truck to him, along with the two thousand dollars Danny had offered him to borrow the truck.

Vinny had merely nodded his thanks as he took the money before telling Epps to tell Danny that Dennis survived Sunstreaker’s attack and that a group of workers had found him alive, rescuinghimfrom the garbage can Sunstreaker hadthrown at him. Vinny alsotold suggestedthat Danny never return to Vegas, alien robots or not, because she wouldn’t be so lucky a second time; that Dennis was gunning for her and was willing to pay a pretty penny to whomever brought him her head.

Callie had gone paper white with panic and fear, demanding they move back home to Canada and as far from Dennis as physically possible. It had taken Danny and Thundercracker to calm her down and even then she had spent the rest of the day perching on the seeker’s shoulder, despite his promises to keep her safe.

It had also been three days ago that Danny had become a permanent fixture in Ratchet’s medbay while she waited for Sunstreaker to wake up.   

Two days ago Mearing called a meeting to discuss their girl’s future on the NEST base, and in two day’s time Danny and her family would have to plead their case to stay on the _Ark_ to Colonel Sharp and Defence Secretary Keller. If the two men decided that they were not worth the resources, as Mearing seemed to think they were not, they would all be removed from the _Ark_ and NEST property.

Mearing didn’t seem to understand or care that if Callie left then so did Thundercracker and his trine, and to lose the seekers would be detrimental to everything Optimus was trying to do, everythinghe was working towards.

Yesterday Ratchet had told them all that Sunstreaker’s frame was completely repaired and at this point he was just gathering energy to function again, and that he could wake up at any moment, so Danny waited, roiling in the unaccustomed feeling of guilt as she waited for Sunstreaker to wake up.

Danny waited for Sunstreaker, but also with and for Sideswipe, like any good friend would, the friend she was determined to be.

The friend she should have been.

The door to the med bay opened and Danny stiffened, a scowl instantly on her face in a defensive maneuver. Cliffjumper had been skulking around, often following Sideswipe as the crimson twin came to visit Sunstreaker.

Danny could never be sure but she often thought she heard a snide remark or two from the minibot, and she was waiting for just the right moment to put the ruby mech in his place.

When Optimus Prime walked in, his large frame taking up the entire door way, Danny found herself relaxing back into her chair.If there was anything she could say about the Prime, it was that he was fair.

“Danny.” The Prime intoned softly, nodding to the small human who slouched in her chair, her face caught in a cross between a scowl and a pout.

“Optimus.” Danny nodded back, brown eyes flicking back to Sunstreaker’s prone frame.    

 “It’s time Danny. Mearing, Defence Secretary Keller and Colonel Sharp are waiting for you.” The Prime said gently, offering her his hand to step on to from her perch on Ratchet’s table. “Callie is already there as well.”

Heaving a sigh and giving a dirty look at nothing in particular, Danny nodded and pulled herself up and out of the chair. Pausing before she stepped onto the Prime’s hand her brown eyes glanced pleadingly to Prowl. “If he wakes up while I’m gone, can you let him know I’ll be right back?”

The data pad set down gently, icy blue optics bore into the little human before he slowly nodded after finding no malice in her eyes. “I will inform him of your status.”

Flashing the Autobot second in command a small grin Danny thanked him andstepped onto Optimus’ hand.

Going back to his data pad Prowl called out, “Good luck Danny.” Blue optics catching the small smile turn into a large toothy grin.

“Don’t worry,” she called to him as Optimus left with her. “I’ll be back!”

The doors slipped shut behind Optimus back, his hand cupped in front of him as he carried Danny. “I…am coming back, right? I mean, this _is_ your ship.”

Deep blue optics tipped down. “My ship on American soil.” Optimus frowned behind his mask at her own frown. “But I certainly hope there is no issue of your staying.”

Giving another sad sigh Danny dropped to sit cross legged in his hand. “I hope you’re right.” Brown eyes watched the medbay doors until they were out of sight. “I really hope you’re right.”

Alone with Sunstreaker, Prowl’s helm shook with a sigh as he focused on his data pad whilethe only sound filling the medbay was the gentle beeping from the scanners monitoring Sunstreaker’s vitals, ensuring that his spark remained strong; and for five days Sunstreaker’s spark has not once flickered.

Yet, as much as Prowl hated to admit it, Danny was right. It was taking Sunstreaker a very long time to wake up and Prowl too was beginning to worry.

Prowl’s icy optics glanced up at the golden warrior before flicking back to his data pad with a disgruntled sigh.

There were not many times when Sunstreaker worried Prowl quite this much, and whenever the Autobot second in command saw one of the twins like this it reminded him of that time, long ago, when they had been young and frightened and they looked to Prowl to keep them safe after the horrors they had faced in the rings.

There was a soft noise in the medbay which Prowl didn’t make, a small sigh and a pained moan, followed by a small burst of static and a broken word. “-owl?”

Prowl’s optics snapped to Sunstreaker’s face to find the golden mech staring up at him, blue optics washed out from his exhaustion but awake nonetheless.

Relief washed over the Second in Command at seeing Sunstreaker awake and he offered the golden mech a small smile. Right now they were not Autobots, nor were they commander and subordinate, they were carer and youngling and in that moment all Prowl saw, even if it was so very briefly, was a young scared face staring up at him.

Clicking off his data pad and setting it aside, Prowl gave Sunstreaker his undivided attention, pulling his seat closer to the med berth before a black hand stretched out to take the limp, dull one laying against the berth.

“Sunny, how are you feeling? Are you in any pain?”

Blue optics flickered and Sunstreaker offered a small, weak smile. “I feel like I was stepped on by Menasor.”

Prowl sighed softly in relief. “I imagine you do. According to Danny you went toe to toe with Shockwave and a handful of drones.” The small smile fell from Prowl’s face. “You two are very lucky to be alive, you both could have been killed.”

Sunstreaker gave another weak smile. “But we didn’t.” The smile fell, Sunstreaker not having the energy to keep it in place.

Prowl huffed, leaning over to suddenly place a kiss to the dull black helm. “I am glad you are alive and home.”

Sunstreaker’s face softened a little. Even after millennias he wasn'tused to Prowl caring and acting as a care taker. “Thanks Prowl.” He muttered softly before blue optics flickedaround the med bay, seeking.

“Sideswipe was beginning to wear himself out with panic. I put him back onduty to ensure he maintained a sliver of normality. He has been here every night with you.” There was a very deliberate pause as both relief and disappointment warred on Sunstreaker’s face. He had never had any friends to ensure he actually woke up besides Sideswipe and Prowl and the second in command suspected he was hoping Danny would be different.

“Danny has been here day and night, refusing to leave until you woke up as well.”

Sunstreaker’s face brightened for a moment before he hid it. “Did she at least sass Ratchet?”

Prowl gave the frontliner an amused look, squeezing his hand. “Yes she did, but Ratchet also has Callie to counteract said sass and balance returned to the med bay.”

Sunstreaker snorted, optics dimming a little with his exhaustion.

“She has been quite worried about your wellbeing.” Blue optics flickered to Sunstreaker’s tired face, gauging.

Sunstreaker looked away before glancing back up to Prowl. “She…has?” The hope in his tone hurt Prowl’s spark.

“She has.” Prowl confirmed, voice soft.

“Where’s the little glitch gone? In trouble no doubt.”

Prowl’s optics flickered. “She and Callie are in a meeting with other humans to figure out if they need to be removed from the base or not.”

Sunstreaker’s optics brightened in a panic at the thought, nearly back to their royal blue hue. “They’re going to kick her out?”

“Mearing wants to.” He watched the upset flash over Sunstreaker’s face. “But I believe that Sharp and Keller would like to keep them around. Callie ensures the Seekers loyalty and they can’t possibly be that stupid to lose them.”

Sunstreaker’s face darkened with a snort. “They’re human, ofcourse they’re that stupid!” he spat. “And Callie is not the only one with value. Danny outran me for almost three weeks!”

Surprised filtered through Prowl and he raised a brow at the frontliner.

Sunstreaker suddenly looked embarrassed, looking down, causing a small smile to flicker on the Praxian’s mouth.

“If anything they are resourceful, Idoubt they will be leaving us any time soon.”

“Even if Mearing wants them gone?”

Sunstreaker, Prowl realized, was worried about a friend and not a rival, and that if anything else warmed Prowl’s spark. The frontliner had such few of them. “I will ensure she does not leave.”

That was a promise Prowl intended to keep when he saw the brightening at Sunstreaker’s face.   

*

Sitting quietly before two men and one woman, Callie McCormick was a wall of ice on the outside, her dark blue eyes hard and guarded while her arms were crossed in front of her like a shield. At her back Thundercracker stood like an honor guard, thick arms crossed, crimson optics narrowed in anger and distain for such a meeting.

Yet even with a seeker at her back Callie’s stomach churned with fear. Dennis was still out there, still alive and wanting _her_. Yes, he would use Danny to get to her, and would have had Sunstreaker not intervened, but it was _she_ who dated him. It had been _her_ that he obsessed over.

Thundercracker guarding her back or not, Callie was terrified of Dennis. He had tried so desperately to find them in those early days, and it was not just out of some need to kill Danny for killing his brother, but because it drove Dennis insane to think Callie was still out there, and she could be stepping out with another man.

He was creepy and obsessive, and the few times Callie had tried to end things before Dennis had actually tried to kill her, he hadstalked her, guilt tripped her into coming back to him; things she had _never_ told Danny until after they went on the run. If her cousin had known then Danny would have killed him in cold blood. In truth, Callie was afraid of Dennis in a way she was not afraid of most people.

He made her skin crawl and filled her panic and fear. When Epps had returned home with his warning Callie spent the night with Thundercracker, sobbing into his warm blue armour, terrified of what could be and what almost happened.

The seeker hadn'tmocked her the following day but stayed near in case she needed some time to cope; that in itself something Callie was not used to. Having a friend, a protector like that, and if these three people thought she was going to give that friendship, that protection up, they had another thing coming.

The door behind them opened with a soft swish but Callie didn't flinch in her wall of ice, determined to stare down each and every one of the people before them.

Optimus Prime bent down to allow Danny to carefully jump down from his hand, quietly taking her seat next to Callie, her own brown eyes just as hard and dark, and full of fire that could only be equaled to Callie’s ice. Blue eyes never took her eyes from Mearing’s, even as Optimus stood and stepped back next to Thundercracker.

The Prime quietly observed the party of three before Callie and Danny. This may be his ship but the human supervisors had called this meeting, and he would allow them to play it out, to an extent,but he would not allow the humans to leave, not at the risk that the seekers would follow.

Keller sat a little straighter, clearing his throat to draw attention to himself and away from the stare down that seemed to be taking place between Mearing the other two women.

“Thank you for coming ladies. I know the last few days have been trying for everyone but before we begin is there anything either of you would like to say?”

Callie’s mouth opened when Danny shot to her feet, hands coming to tent on the table they sat at, the stitches in her arm much more visible as she stood. “I do your…honor.”

Callie’s head whipped around, anger in her voice as she hissed “Sit down!” Butshe was ignored as Keller laughed.

“I’m not a judge Danny, you don not have to call me honor. You can, however, call me Defence Secretary.”

Nodding, burgundy hair bobbing behind her in a ponytail, Danny gave a little shrug. “Force of habit.” She admitted before launching into the speech she had been practising in her head for the past two days. “Don’t punish my family for my mistakes.” Callie’s eyes bulged and her lips pursed in annoyance as Danny continued. 

“It is not Callie’s fault that I left and she shouldn’t be here to share in my punishment. It was my choice to go and they had no prior knowledge to my leaving. I take _full_ responsibility for my actions.”

Behind them Thundercracker and Optimus shared a look before focusing back in on what the humans were discussing.

“What are you doing?” Callie hissed quietly to her cousin.

“Making sure you and the others have some place to sleep tonight that isn’t the side of the road.” Danny hissed back.

“You _do_ realize that we are spending far too much on you and your little family, and getting nothing in return!” Mearing snapped, drawing both of their attention.

“The antibiotics and pain medication that Danny requires cost money. The cover up when _Danny_ instigated Sunstreaker into transforming in public, cost money. The food you eat, the gas you use, _the stitches in your arm!_ All of that costs the American government money. A government to which you do not belong to as you are both Canadian! Here illegally I might add!”

Blue met brown before twin glares were turned back to glare at Mearning’s red face.

“All of this is true Mearing.” Keller cut in before she could continue. His words thought out and slow. “However, there is an opportunity here that I think would be foolish to squander.”

Confused looks from all three women blinked at the Secretary of Defence. 

“What opportunity would that be?” Mearing asked slowly from between gritted teeth.

Colonel Sharp spoke up then. “Sunstreaker, one of the Autobots most fearsome front liners was avoided, fought against and out maneuvered for almost fourteen days. Also, when they both were taken captive by that...that terrorist group, it was Danny’s ingenuity which got them out, _and_ _,_ she did not freeze when Sunstreaker faced Shockwave, helping to save his life.”

“Danny here, is also not the only one with an impressive set of skills.” Keller added when the Colonel finished, nodding to Callie. “According to what few records we could gather, Callie and Mia both could have accomplished the same thing in much different ways. According to the Las Vegas police they have a report of a girl matching Mia’s description who flirted her way into several different high end dealerships and managed to steal several keys from dealers. Not once was she suspected or caught doing such things In addition to that,Aleyah would have been Olympic material in sharp shooting had her father not become sick, and Liz…” Keller sighed, his hand waving helplessly around. “Liz has been doing things to our systems that Glen says just shouldn’t be possible for a civilian. Which means she must be an accomplished hacker.”

They were met with cold stares from both Callie and Danny, neither raising to the bait of bragging about their past. That was how you got caught.

“With all due respect.” Mearing said slowly, her eyes narrowed in suspicion. “I don’t see the point of bringing any of that up.”

“The point, Mearing,” Colonel Sharp said firmly, “Is that they have potential.”

“Potential for what!”

“Urban warfare.” He said simply, his gaze steady.

Those three little words shattered the illusion of ice as both Danny and Callie’s jaws dropped, even ruby and ocean blue optics flared a little in surprise at his words.

“What?” Mearing hissed.             

“Whether we like it or not, the Decepticons are attacking urban setting more and more and put simply, we are unprepared to deal with a large strike against a city.” Colonel Sharp said firmly, gesturing to Callie and Danny. “But they know how to think, how to act in a city setting. Where to move and _how_ to move without being spotted for what you are, and if we need to move in quickly and quietly we need people who can do that.”

“People like them?” Mearing asked, still in a haze of shock.

Colonel Sharp nodded, gesturing to a man at their backs, dressed all in black, who then walked smoothly to both women and laid two folders out before them.

“Those are contracts ladies.” Colonel Sharp explained as both Danny and Callie, in a state of shock, opened the folders to read what was enclosed. “A three year contract to be N.E.S.T operatives, for the both of you, as well as Mia, Liz and Aleyah. Unlike other armies we are an international task force and your citizenships will not get you removed from the country, you would also get to remain here on the _Ark_ with the Autobots and other N.E.S.T soldiers to live and train. You will not have to leave Thundercracker.” He added, giving Callie a pointed look.

“Nor the twins.” He added, casting that same look to Danny.

There was a moment of pause from Danny, brown eyes still on the paper before she piped up. “I stole more in two weeks than what you want to pay me yearly for being a _Non-biological Extraterrestrial Species Treaty_ operative.” 

“ _Danny!_ ” Callie hissed, giving her a hard kick under the table. 

Colonel Sharp merely held his hand up, a pleasant smile on his face. “It’s aright Callie, Danny is right, it is much less than what you are accustomed to, however,” he added with a smirk. “I have three advantages over stealing cars.”

He ticked up a finger with every item. “One. Robot aliens which turn into vehicles.”

Behind them Optimus and Thundercracker rose their brows but said nothing as both humans nodded in agreement. “That’s actually a really good point.” Danny agreed.

“Two. There is a very large fence and a hell of a lot of fire power now between you and Dennis Soomac, who, to our knowledge is willing to pay a handsome fee to see you both dead.”

Danny’s lips pursed and she nodded whilst Callie sighed bitterly. “Oh trust me, he doesn’t want me dead that quick.” Her words earning a snarl from Thundercracker.

“Three. Lucy will get to attend school with Annabelle, one of the best private schools on the coast.”

Danny nodded, brown eyes falling back to the contract. “Those are actually really good points.”

“So we would train here? With N.E.S.T soldiers and live among the Autobots?” Callie asked softly.

“That is correct.” Colonel Sharp nodded. “You would also run in missions, perform base duties and have down time just like everyone else. You would accompany and support the Autobots into battle as well.”

Both Danny and Callie glanced at each other before looking back to the papers. “There are worse ways to die.” She shrugged, signing the contract, Callie following suit after a moment.

Both men smiled, pleased that both agreed. “We are going to be offering your sisters the same contract later this afternoon, although Liz’s duties will be performed behind a computer rather than in the field.” Keller informed them.

“Good.” Both said at once as they handed the folders back to the waiting soldier.

“One last thing.” Colonel Sharp said, voice firm. “Danny, although your last stunt was performed whilst you were still a citizen your actions are not acceptable of a N.E.S.T soldier.”

Danny nodded. “It won’t happen again.”

“See that it does not. However, you will be grounded to base for the next eight weeks, not allowed to leave even in your down time. Is that understood?” Colonel Sharp said firmly.

Danny nodded, a small smirk on her mouth. “Yes sir, it is.” Then she muttered to Callie. “I haven’t been grounded since I was a kid.”

“You’re lucky that’s all you’re getting.” Callie muttered back.  

“All right you two. You have twenty four hours to get yourselves in order then you report to Sergeant Robert Epps on the tarmac for training at 0800.”

Taking their dismissal, both nodded and stood,Danny pausing for a moment. “Uhh thank you, sir, for not kicking us out, and for the opportunity to not be a waste of resources.” Brown eyes blazing at Mearing briefly before turning back to Sharp. “Am I supposed to salute you?”

Sharp nodded. “Usually.”   

Straightening, Danny gave a small salute before turning and quickly leaving the room, followed by Callie. Both worried that they would come to their senses and change their minds, Optimus and Thundercracker following.

When the door closed behind them Mearing turned and hissed “You did that on purpose! They are not needed here, why are you endangering our lives? There’s?”

Colonel Sharp’s eyes darkened. “Because they are not a waste of resources. Mark my words Mearing, keeping them around will prove to be useful.”

The woman huffed an angry sigh before pushing herself to her feet and storming from the room.

“Besides.” Keller muttered to Sharp. “If they had left then so would have the seekers. We would be foolish to lose that kind of fire power.” 

Next to him Sharp nodded.

*

Once outside Danny sighed in the utmost relief. “Well, not the worse job interview I’ve had. Not the best but not the worse.”

Callie gave her cousin the flattest look she could, head shaking slowly in her irritation. “You are so lucky.” She dead panned, blue eyes narrowed in what could only be pure irritation.

Casting her cousin a smirk Danny shrugged as she began to walk backwards, a slow trek back to the med bay. “Maybe.” She sing-songed. “But I got us jobs out of the whole thing.”

If anything that only irritated Callie further. “Rewarding poor behaviour, that’s just _awesome_!”

From above the two Thundercracker rolled his optics, vents puffing air in a sigh.

“Hey,” Danny, still in a singing tone, countered. “My poor behaviour let us know about those creeps who want to turn the Cybertronians into a fucked up game of operation, _and_ put us in the know about Shockwave.” 

Callie’s blue eyes narrowed at the smug look on her cousin’s face. Hands were planted onto her hips and Thundercracker braced for the stinging words that were sure to come.

“Your stupidity landed Sunstreaker in the med bay!”

Danny paused in her backing up, her face falling a little before she quickly hid the guilt. “You suck man.” She spat at her cousin before she spun on the balls of her feet and marched away.

“Where are you going?” Callie called after her, surprised her cousin had given up the fight so easily.

“To make sure Sunstreaker hasn’t woken up without me!” she called back without looking over her shoulder. 

Callie snorted, head shaking as her cousin disappeared around the corner, determined to get back to her post.

Optimus’ head tilted as a comm from Ratchet came through, an unseen smile flicking over the Autobot commander’s mouth. “It seems Danny missed her opportunity to be there when Sunstreaker wakes.”

He glanced down to the small human still standing between him and Thundercracker. “But I am glad Sunstreaker has finally awoken.”

Callie snorted and a victorious look flickered over his face. “Serves her right!” When both Thundercracker and the Prime gave her a questioning look the blonde continued. “She’ll have to really make it up to him now. It’ll be good for the pair of them to actually become friends.”

“You think they can?” Thundercracker questioned, not sure if either Sunstreaker or Danny could get past their mutual dislike for each other.

“Well,” Callie shrugged. “There are just some things that you go through with someone that you can’t help but be friends when all is said and done. And nearly being killed a hand full of times is definitely one of those times. Those two will be just fine.”

It was Optimus’ turn to tilt his head in question. “Then why be so hard on Danny?”

“Because she’s a stubborn asshole. She needs to be drop kicked into the right direction rather than a gentle leading, and being mean to Sunstreaker is a drop kick worthy offence.”

At Callie’s smirking face neither the Autobot nor the Decepticon had anything to say to that.

* 

Walking through the med bay doors Danny found herself freeze, the smirk that had been glued there since her return, the mask to her guilt, finally fell at the sight before her.

Sideswipe was sitting next to his twin, a smile plastered over his face as he clung to Sunstreaker’s hand.

The still battered looking frontliner was sitting up but leaning against the wall at his back, optics still very dim with exhaustion. Prowl was on his other side, still sitting in a chair but he had pulled it much closer, the black and white mech’s hand resting on Sunstreaker’s thigh.

Tears gathered in her brown eyes and Danny felt the hitch in her chest. Sunstreaker had finally woken up and she hadn’t been here to be with him.

Dull blue optics flickered to her and a tired, weak smile turned into a smirk. “Was wondering where you had gone to, glitch. Was getting worried I would have to go hunt you down again.”

Danny swallowed hard, the smirk crawling back onto her face as she forced the guilt and worry down. “Well,” she managed “when you’re pulling a Sleeping Beauty it makes it hard to watch over you all the time. Especially when you decide to sleep for _ever_.”

There was no bite to her words but a playfulness that had not been there before. A gentleness that before the lab and Shockwave, had never been associated between Danny and Sunstreaker.

Sideswipe snorted but was ignored as Danny started across the medbay, nearly trotting but trying not to run to her friends.

Reaching the base of the med berth Sideswipe leaned down, allowing her to climb onto his hand so that he could lift her to the golden warrior. Once on the med berth Danny paused only to pull her shoes off, tossing them over her shoulder and to the floor before she moved to climb up onto Sunstreaker’s thigh.

Climbing up his stomach and chest unaided and unhampered, and just as Callie had not so long ago, Danny wrapped her small arms around his neck as much as she could, giving Sunstreaker the smallest hug he had ever had.

Sunstreaker froze, not entirely sure what to do now, panicked blue optics shifting to his twin for help. Sideswipe beamed at his twin and pressed into the twin bond, causing Sunstreaker to sag with relief at feeling his bonded.

**_‘It’s okay bro, she was just worried about you. Terrified you weren’t going to wake up.’_ **

**_‘What…what is she doing? What do I do?’_ **

The beaming look fell from Sideswipe’s face as he realised the impact of his twin’s words; Sunstreaker couldn’t understand that Danny was trying to hug him out of relief, was happy that he was alive because no one else besides himself, Prowl and Jazz and ever really cared if Sunstreaker woke up.

He had no friends to hug him when he needed it, to keep a vigil when he was out. No one who would go out of their way to kill and protect him beyond his small family, and the thought that someone else out there might confused him.

**_‘She’s hugging you Sunstreaker, or at least tying to. She’s just not as big as us to do it properly.’_ **

**_‘Why is she hugging me? What do I do now?’_ **

**_‘She’s hugging you because she was worried, and is happy you’re okay. Like it or not you’re her friend now Sunny.’_ He paused before asking. _‘Do you like what she’s doing?’_**

Panicked blue optics softened a little, glancing to Prowl and back again. **_‘Yes.’_** He whispered even over the twin bond, as though caring for someone else was something bad.

Sideswipe’s helm shook and he gently took Sunstreaker’s arm and very gently wrapped it around Sunstreaker’s chest, covering Danny. Sideswipe smiled softly at his twin as Sunstreaker froze, and braced for rejection.

“I’m so glad you’re okay.” Danny whispered, pressing the side of her face into his chest plate.

Sunstreaker relaxed and smirked at Sideswipe’s beaming face. **_‘You look like an idiot.’_**

**_‘And you look happy.’_** Sideswipe countered.

At that Sunstreaker smiled, helm dipping so that the bottom of his chin brushed Danny’s head. “I’m glad you’re alright to. Thanks for getting me home.”

Danny snorted into his armour. “I told you I would.” Her voice muffled. “Besides, what are friends for?”

And for the first time in as long as he could remember, Sunstreaker felt lighter in his spark and maybe just a little hopeful.

Sideswipe felt the change in his twin and couldn’t stop grinning like a fool. Too bad for Sunstreaker, smiling was contagious and he ended up grinning back just as brightly for the first time in a long time.

*  

The steady beeping was the only sound inside the med bay and for the hundredth time Sunstreaker rolled over, restless as he tried to settle. Ratchet had ordered Danny and Sideswipe out near nightfall, demanding that Sunstreaker spend the night resting before he was released in the morning.

No one had been happy about the arrangement, especially Sunstreaker. Having spent so much time resting and recharging whilst recovering the frontliner found it hard to recharge, nearly impossible with how restless he was feeling, and he was craving contact with his twin, needing him so very badly. Sunstreaker needed to feel Sideswipe’s warm plating against his own, a frame so similar to his own pressing tightly into his, banding around him.

Huffing an annoyed sigh Sunstreaker rolled over again, the cold space were Sideswipe’s warm frame _should_ have been, mocking him, reminding him just how alone he was and how long he had gone without contact with his twin.

He tried to reach across the bond and could once again feel that Sideswipe was alive but nothing else. It had been carefully narrowed again so that Sunstreaker couldn’t read his twin’s emotions. Sunstreaker knew that Sideswipe was not in recharge, recharge felt different to this, so once again Sunstreaker had been deliberately shut out of their bond but this time he was at a loss as to why.

He had brought their little human glitch back in one piece, helped uncover a dangerous threat that had been stalking Sideswipe _and_ had found out that Shockwave was alive and well on Earth.

Of course, now Danny knew his and Sideswipe’s sordid little secret, about how they had been whored out to the highest bidder and used as breeding fodder, and that Shockwave had used them in the worse ways possible.

Maybe that was why Sideswipe had shut him out. Danny knew now what they really were and maybe Sideswipe was angry that he let the cat out of the bag, as it were. Or maybe he was working through the night terrors himself and he didn’t want to drag Sunstreaker down that rabbit hole with him.

Heaving another deep sigh Sunstreaker rolled over and tried to settle, wondering if he should contact Ratchet for something to help him recharge. He was working himself up when he was supposed to be resting. He just couldn’t get rid of the nagging feeling that he had to have done _something_ to upset Sideswipe again in order to get himself blocked from their bond again. But what? What could he have possibly said or done that would warrant him being exiled again?

The hiss of the medbay doors opening caused Sunstreaker to tense, his whole frame going ram rod stiff, battle protocols snapping to life as he waited to be attacked. The air around him seemed to still in anticipation of battle and blue optics fell off-line to imitate recharge.

If Cliffjumper thought he was going to start something tonight, he had another thing coming…

“Sunny?” Sideswipe’s hoarse voice whispered into the darkness from his back, Sunstreaker wincing at how loud it was in the silence of the room.

“Sunny, you awake?”

Blue optics popped back online, the dark blue light illuminating the slope of his nose and high cheek struts.

“What?” he mocked whispered back, wincing internally at the harshness of his own voice.

There was a pregnant pause before Sunstreaker heard his twin’s shuffling movement slowly coming to his berth followed by a gentle touch to his lower back plates.

“Are you alright?” He whispered, Sideswipe sounding confused by his twin’s anger.

“Fine.” Sunstreaker muttered, still refusing to look at his twin, refusing to turn over. Still not understanding why he had been blocked out again, and now having Sideswipe so near it only hurt all the more.

The gentle touch to his back disappeared but Sunstreaker’s conflicted disappointment was short lived as Sideswipe slipped onto the med berth with him, squeezing his way onto the narrow slab of metal, pressing into Sunstreaker’s back. One arm wriggled its way under Sunstreaker’s waist, the other draped around his chest and Sideswipe pressed his nose into the back of Sunstreaker’s neck.   

Sweet blessed relief filled Sunstreaker as Sideswipe snuggled in close, taking a deep breath of Sunstreaker’s scent and opened the bond back up between them.

‘ ** _What’s wrong?_** ’ Sideswipe asked as he pressed a kiss to his twin’s shoulder, followed by a light, playful bite. ‘ ** _You weren’t this tense before._** ’ There was a pause over their bond and behind him Sideswipe’s head cocked. ‘ ** _Nightmares?_** ’

The draw of Sideswipe’s spark was too great to keep Sunstreaker from allowing his side of the bond to crumble completely, and he willingly allowed himself to be drawn to his twin’s spark. ‘ ** _No._** ’ he muttered, almost ashamed to admit it out loud. ‘ ** _Not that._** ’

Sideswipe sighed, his gentle kissing working its way across the top edge of the back of Sunstreaker’s shoulder, his face pressing into the crook of Sunstreaker’s neck. Sunstreaker shivered, his hips jumping back to press tightly into his twins. ‘ ** _Then what? Is it Danny? She’s cool, I think she’s proven that much since she left with you. I don’t think she’ll tell…_** ’

Sunstreaker huffed again and despite having his twin pressed into him, the gold frontliner couldn’t get over the fact that he had been blocked from the bond _again_.

‘ ** _Not that._** ’ He muttered as he fought hard to not feel so foolish. He knew he was being ridiculous and unfair. Sideswipe must have had good reason to block him out, yet despite all that Sunstreaker couldn’t let it go; things like this would chew him up inside until he was a broiling mess of broken emotions that couldn’t be sorted until Sideswipe dragged his aft to the training rings and beat it out of him.

‘ ** _Then what?_** ’ There was another pause and Sideswipe shifted, heaving himself up so that he leaned over Sunstreaker’s frame, and the golden warrior felt like a coward when he powered down his optics. ‘ ** _Sunny….what’s wrong? I can’t help if you don’t tell me._** ’

Sideswipe’s free hand suddenly found his twins audio fin, moving gently over the edge, soothing Sunstreaker’s spark, just as he had done when they were young. Drawing Sunstreaker back out to him before the hurt could fester properly and turn into a full blown fight.

‘ ** _You blocked me out again._** ’ Sunstreaker muttered, trying to hide his face in the pad of the berth, trying not to sound as needy as he felt. But he had been so long without his twin, spent so many days isolated from Sideswipe and locked out of their bond the he was feeling raw and vulnerable; the first things that would often set off his rage, and that would then lead to a fight and brig time.

Over him Sideswipe froze, blue optics dimmed in thought. ‘ ** _Oh Sunny_** ** _! I’m sorry_** ** _’I didn’t mean to_** ** _.’_** Reassurance and love suddenly filled the bond and Sideswipe was pulling Sunstreaker over to lay flat on his back.

Moving over his twin’s hips Sideswipe stretched out over the golden frame, arms twining his arms under his helm.

Black hands fell to Sideswipe’s hips, and his lower lip caught between his denta, butSunstreaker didn’t online his optics. He found he couldn’t look at Sideswipe, despite the love pouring from his side of the bond.

‘ ** _Didn’t want to get your hopes up_** ** _.’_** Sideswipe explained gently as he kissed the miserable look away, suddenly feeling guilty that he had caused such misery in his spark mate. There was a shy response from Sunstreaker as feather light kisses were returned. ‘ ** _I wasn’t sure that I could get back into the medbay without being caught by Hatchet, that’s all._** ’

“I’m sorry Sunny.” Sideswipe whispered against soft lips. “Please look at me.”

Sunstreaker felt his spark spin tighter in his chest, his tanks knotting and his grip tightened on Sideswipe’s hips. “Swipe…” his voice wavered, and Sunstreaker couldn’t understand why he was feeling like this.      

“Sunny.”

Sideswipe’s voice was so soft, so full of love.

Dark blue optics flickered online, the light illuminating the slope of his nose again, Sideswipe’s loving face filling his vision.

_LoveyouLoveyouLoveyou_ boomed through the bond like drums in the background and it helped Sunstreaker relax under Sideswipe’s warm frame.

“I’m sorry I was a jerk.” The gold twin muttered, optics averting under the love of his twin.

“I’m sorry too. I shouldn’t have pushed you away.” Sideswipe admitted. “Should have told you what I was up to.”

Sunstreaker shrugged, griping his twin tighter. ‘ ** _Doesn’t matter._** ’He whispered over their bond, Sideswipe still able to feel the sadness and the _I’m sorry_ that hummed quietly in the back of the bond. ‘ ** _Just…missed you._** ’ He finally admitted.

Sideswipe’s face softened over him and he tsk’ed softly. “I missed you too Sunny.” Sideswipe whispered as a playful look flickered over his face. “And I know how to make it up to you.”

Sunstreaker hummed as Sideswipe readjusted again, coming up onto all fours, a knee sliding up between black thighs, the crimson twin leaning down to softly kiss soft lips.

_Missed you….Love you_ echoed between them, and neither were sure who felt it or thought it first before it became a soft mantra between them.

Sideswipe’s lips never left Sunstreaker’s, the moment impossibly gentle with only the teasing of glossa from either of them as Sideswipe’s hand slid softly down Sunstreaker’s side, fingers lingering on the spot where Shockwave had ripped a hole into his side.

Sideswipe gasped, cobalt optics flashing as a sudden panic gripped him and their kiss broke. “I could've _lost_ you.” He whispered as the realization crashed down on him. “I almost lost you and I never would have known until it was too late and I would have let you die alone.”

Sunstreaker shook his helm, feeling Sideswipe’s panic and pushing his love back. “You didn’t though. I’m still right here.” Then he pressed his mouth back to his twins, his kiss a little more desperate. The gold twin broke it for only a moment, lips brushing at Sideswipe’s. “Spark. Need your spark.”

Sideswipe was never able to deny his spark mate on a good day never mind when Sunstreaker was so desperate, so needy.

Crimson chests plates unlocked, sliding open to reveal Sideswipe’s silver and black spark flickering brightly, tendrils of energy pressing against the protective glass, desperate to make contact with its other half.

Sunstreaker quickly followed suit, his chest plates catching in their hurry to open, his own silver and black spark, identical to Sideswipe’s in every way, reaching up. The glass coverings over both of their sparks fell away even quicker, the crystal barely clicking into its housing before they pressed their chests together.      

Sparks reached out, tendrils reaching and twinning, pressing into each other, both gasping as the first burn sent a bolt of pleasure through their frames as their sparks merged into each other; two becoming one once again.

Memories and feelings, both old and new, were passed between them before it was impossible to tell where one emotion ended and another began. Images of nights just like this one, with one twin hurt and damaged and the other providing comfort and support, passed between them and lust curled low in their bellies as they acted as one.

Sunstreaker’s valve cover slipped open without needing much prompting, his valve slick with his need, lubricant already coating his rippling opening. Both twins shivered as the cool air kissed the hot opening, both feeling the sensation. _Need you_ whispered from Sunstreaker before it too was lost to the spark bond, becoming part of both of them.

Sideswipe released his spike, delicate plating springing forward, tall and rigid with his growing arousal. A bead of pre-transfluid already emerging from the slit, the black and red spike became trapped between their writhing frames.

Again they both shuddered at the friction on Sideswipe’s spike, the heat between their frames. With their sparks still tangled tightly Sideswipe’s mouth found Sunstreaker’s and he shifted their frames, wrapping Sunstreaker’s legs around his waist.

It was not often that Sunstreaker allowed anyone, even Sideswipe, access to his valve; too many dark memories to allow it to happen too often. Yet, even as deep in the merge as the twins were, the enormity of this moment was not lost on Sideswipe.

_Beautiful_ was whispered over the bond, accepted and reverberated back to Sideswipe as the crimson mech’s thick spike slid home.

Sunstreaker gasped, optics flashing brightly as he pressed his chest into Sideswipe’s, hips bucking up to meet his twin’s. The crimson mech buried his face into Sunstreaker’s throat, his spark mate’s pleasure bursting hot and hard through the bond, feeding into Sideswipe’s pleasure.

“Fraaaaag!” they both hissed as the pleasure instantly banded around their bellies. Their frames heated quickly and Sideswipe began to thrust, his movement slow and lazy, setting himself a little deeper each time he thrust forward.

Hot pleasure burned through the twins, their sparks twinned as tight as they possibly could, each of Sideswipe’s even, gentle thrusts eliciting pleasure. Sunstreaker cried out with every deep thrust, being filled again and again by Sideswipe.

It had been so long, too long apart, too long separated from the bond. Too long not feeling each other.

Neither could say who tipped over the edge first but overload suddenly overwhelmed them, their sparks going supernova, spinning wild and hot between their chests. Sideswipe sunk deeply into his spark mate’s valve as they both succumbed, transfluid filling the tight space between them.

Wordless shouts of pleasure echoed through the med bay, disappearing until the only noises heard were their fans whirling and quiet panting as they came down from their high, along with a more erratic beeb from the machines monitoring Sunstreaker’s frame.

 Sparks sank back into their spark chambers with a soft sigh and the twins fell limp, still clinging to each other desperately, not ready to let each other go.

“I love you. Missed you.” Sunstreaker panted. “Sorry.”

Sideswipe’s helm shook, his voice just as shaky as his mouth found Sunstreaker’s in another kiss. “No sorry. Love you.”

At long last Sunstreaker felt the tension around his spark ease and he finally let go of the anger which had hung around him since the humans had landed on their base.

He had his twin back and that was all that mattered.

*   

Sunstreaker stuck close to Sideswipe’s back as they made their way to the mess hall. It was a large room constructed so that both humans and cybertronians could eat together, something Optimus had insisted on to help create more bonds with the natives of Earth.

Sunstreaker hated it, the extra bodies just created an atmosphere louder and more congested than usual, the Cybertroniansconstantly having to ensure they didn’t crush any stray humans that may wander too close to large pedes. But Sunstreaker dutifully followed his twin into the loud room, bracing himself for the snide comments to come.

Tracks passed him first, a smirk plastered on his face as he eyed Sunstreaker down. Heat crawled up Sunstreaker's cheeks and his tanks knotted in anxiety, a growl escaping his throat as he passed Tracks. The smirk only grew, Tracks knowing he had gotten his point across with a simple look. _You suck Sunstreaker._  

Cobalt optics dipped down to stare at the floor and Sunstreaker moved a little closer to Sideswipe, fists balling. The first mech that said _anything_ and he was going to make them feel like he was feeling right now, and if he ended up in the brig for it, so be it.

Sideswipe’s side of the bond pressed into his and love again filled his senses. Face still angry, Sunstreaker sent a wave of gratefulness and love back to his twin. **_‘Thank you.’_** He whispered over the bond.

Sideswipe flashed him a smile before he took a seat at a table next to Skywarp. Sunstreaker paused, an old uneasiness filling his chest as he looked at Thundercracker watching him wearily from across his mate, Danny, Callie and Mia sitting in the centre of their table at their own tiny table.

Sideswipe gave his twin another smile, a little more nervous than the last one. **_‘Sunny?’_**

**_‘Sure it’s safe? Them?”_ ** **_’_ **

Thundercracker seemed to sense Sunstreaker’s unease, his own blue frame tensing, likely thinking the gold mech was about to launch into an attack.

  **‘ _Yes.’_**

It was Sideswipe’s assurance which helped Sunstreaker force himself to relax and take a seat next to his twin, accepting the energon that was passed down from Skywarp. Sunstreaker tried not to hesitate before he took a sip, but old habits and all.

Tension was rising between Sunstreaker and the seekers, the Autobot not having had enough time around them to truly become relaxed with them.

“So, Ratchet let you out, huh?” And just like that, the tension broke a little, and Sunstreaker looked down at Danny who had paused from her scrambled eggs to talk to him,caring enough to talk to him.

“It appears so.” Sunstreaker shrugged, almost smiling. “He’ll be sending you the bill for my paint job however.”

The others began to relax as well when Danny laughed.

“Well you’ll have to get in line Sunstreaker.” Callie smirked at her cousin. “Epps is first in line, since she owes him a new bike.”

Danny shrugged, digging back into her eggs. “Well, since I don’t have to get the horses back I can use that money to get a new bike.” She managed between bites. “Whole thing is a moot point now anyhow, thanks to Thundercracker.”

“Well, perhaps if you were a better thief and got back here sooner you could have helped us.”

Laughter erupted from their table and Danny choked. “I’ll have you know I am a very good thief.”

Thundercracker gave her an amused look, crimson optics sparkling in a playfulness Sunstreaker hadn’t seen from a Decepticon before. He found himself relaxing a little more, not feeling threatened and actually feeling included by others besides Sideswipe.

“Primus!” a small, sneering voice destroying any happy feelings that may have been developing, the playfulness falling from Thundercracker’s face. “I shouldn’t be surprised the traitors, the loser and the psychopath are all getting along.”

Sunstreaker’s look turned dark as he turned to glower at Cliffjumper and the small red mech’s smirk grew.

“What’s a’matter cray-cray? Don’t like the truth? Primus you’re pathetic, couldn’t even catch a human.”

Sunstreaker’s knuckles creaked with how tightly he squeezed his hands closed and behind him he heard the squeaking of chairs, the seekers and Sideswipe readying to grab him should he lunge for the minibot.  

“For fuck’s sake Cliffjumper, do you do anything else other than spout useless bullshit with your trap?” Sunstreaker’s head whipped around so fast to face Danny, he heard his cervical struts crack. Blue and red optics were wide as they stared at the little human woman who smirked up at the gobsmacked look on Cliffjumper’s face.

“Well, I bet you have another use for it but that would involve you shutting up.” She mock sighed before using her hand and tongue to make a crude gesture that Sunstreaker recognised as a _blow job_. “I mean, you are at the right height for it on real mechs.”

Next to her Mia choked, trying not to laugh, and Callie jumped in. “I dunno Danny. With how _little_ he is I don’t know if he could actually satisfy anyone. And it’s not like his hands would be much use either.”

Rage filled Cliffjumper’s face and angry blue optics turned to Sunstreaker. “What’s wrong _Sunny_! Need a little human to fight your battles? Are you that much of a loser?”

The rage returned and Sunstreaker’s optics flared in distress.

“What’s wrong _Cliffy_ can’t take a little human all on your own? Gotta turn it around on someone else? Are _you_ really that pathetic?”

Irritation filled the minibot’s face, his armour puffing in aggression.

“You wouldn’t be thinking of hurting a human now, would you Cliffjumper?” Thundercracker’s cold words snapped the minibots optics up to him. “Because that would be very un- Autobot of you.”

Cliffjumper’s irritation formed into rage. “What would you know about being an Autobot, Con? You may have the others fooled but I know your kind. Blood thirsty and destroyed our planet! The others may trust you but I don’t, and when you try to kill us I’ll be ready for you.” He sneered, armour puffed up and annoyed, optics dark with rage and hate.

Thundercracker looked unamused and unthreatened. “The only fool here Cliffjumper, is you.”

Cliffjumper snarled, his hand reaching for subspace and Sunstreaker tensed, ready to grab the minibot should he pull a blaster on the seeker.

“ _Cliffjumper!_ ” Prowl’s angry voice echoed over the noise of the mess hall and everyone froze as their Second in Command marched over to them, wings angled high and angry, despite his cool face. “What is going on here?” He demanded.

It was Callie who answered first. “Nothing Prowl.” She said airily, a bright smile quickly hiding her own rage at Cliffjumper. “Cliffjumper was just leaving.”

All eyes and optics turned to the minibot who relaxed a little and huffed. Glare still narrowed on them he managed to dampen his sneer. “Yeah, sure. Whatever.”

Prowl watched Cliffjumper spin away with one last sneer at the twins and the seekers before slinking away from the group, rejoining Bumblebee and his little human friend Sam.

Prowl glanced at the group of seekers, twins and humans once more before he returned to his own table to finish his energon.

Once Prowl was out of ear shot Skywarp snorted into his energon. “Cliffjumper is a little shit.”

Danny nodded. “We should weld his mouth shut.”

“I don’t think there’s enough steel in all of the United States and Canada to fill that gapping maw.” Sideswipe sneered in turn. “But enough is enough. I’ve had enough of him trying to start fights with us. It’s time to get him back.”

Skywarp’s frown turned into a smirk. “What do you have in mind?”

A pair of mischievous looks came over their faces as they began to discuss the best tactics to get back at the minibot.      

For a moment Sunstreaker sat almost shocked at what just happened, glancing to Danny and Callie then up to Thundercracker.

“Thank you.” He muttered to them, and meant it, because besides Sideswipe no one ever stood up for him, not ever. It was a foreign concept to have someone else care enough to stand with him, and have the altercation end with him _not_ going to the brig.

Thundercracker nodded to him, a small smile on his lips. “You are welcome.” He nodded.

Danny nodded too, quickly finishing what was left of her meal. “Any…time.” She managed between bites.

“So, what happened to you two? You don’t seem to be trying to kill each other anymore.” Skywarp observed with a smile, crimson optics flashing between them.

Sunstreaker shrugged and Danny smirked. “You know, there are just some things you go through that when all is said and done, you just can’t help but be friends.”

A smile fluttered briefly over Sunstreaker’s mouth before sliding back into neutral. “Something like that.” He agreed.

Amusement filled the bond and before Sunstreaker could ask Sideswipe commented “You know, it’s still so weird to be having Decepticons here, having energon with us.”

Thundercracker’s mouth flicked into a smile. “Strange new world we live in.”

“Do you think others will come?” Mia asked looking up at the Cybertronians.

The Autobots glanced at the two Decepticons who in turn shared a look. “There are many Cons who are unsatisfied with Megatron and the war, many who look for a way out but are afraid to leave. Or can’t.” Thundercracker said slowly.

“Can’t?” Sunstreaker asked.

Thundercracker nodded. “The Combaticons, for example.”

The twins snorted and a small smile flickered over the blue seeker’s mouth. “It is true. They hate Megatron, and he hates them in equal measure. He keeps them for Bruticus and they are forced to stay because of the loyalty program. They have no choice and they suffer for it.”

The humans and the twins fell silent in shock.

Sideswipe’s optics dimmed. “So they are slaves then?”

Thundercracker nodded, looking at his energon. “They are. But would they join Starscream?” the seeker shrugged. “Hard to say.” He admitted. “But we shouldn’t dwell on that quite yet. We may get lucky and they may join us, others may as well, but right now we have monitor duty Sunstreaker.”

The gold mech nodded as he finished his energon. He moved to stand, the humans being lifted down to the floor by Sideswipe, heading to their first day of training.

The gold mech turned to head to the monitor room when Danny’s voice called out to him. “Bye Sunstreaker!” He turned to see her waving at him, smiling up at him, and that shocked him. “See you after duty!”

He nodded and gave her a small wave before she turned and joined her sister and cousin. Thundercracker caught up to him, walking next to him, again something Sunstreaker was not used to but _could_ get used to.

“A strange new world indeed Sunstreaker.” Thundercracker commented with a grin and Sunstreaker couldn’t help but grin back and agree.

“It is Thundercracker. It really is.”

End.

 


End file.
